psalm  90, 


13- 


From  the  old  metrical  paraphrase,  sung  at  the 
Consecration  of  Bishop  Seabury  in  Aberdeen,  n 
November  1784,  and  at  the  centennial  commem- 
oration of  the  Consecration,  1884,  in  Aberdeen 
and  in  Connecticut. 

OLORD,  the  Saviour  and  defence 
Of  us  Thy  chosen  race, 
From  age  to  age  Thou  still  hast  been 
Our  sure  abiding-place. 

To  satisfy  and  cheer  our  souls 

Thy  early  mercy  send; 
That  we  may  all  our  days  to  come 

In  joy  and  comfort  spend. 

Let  happy  times,  with  large  amends, 

Dry  up  our  former  tears, 
Or  equal  at  the  least  the  term 

Of  our  afflicted  years. 

To  all  Thy  servants,  Lord,  let  this 
Thy  wondrous  work  be  known; 

And  to  our  offspring  yet  unborn 
Thy  glorious  power  be  shown. 

Let  Thy  bright  rays  upon  us  shine, 

Give  Thou  our  work  success; 
The  glorious  work  we  have  in  hand 

Do  Thou  vouchsafe  to  bless. 


To  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost, 
The  God  whom  we  adore, 

Be  glory;  as  it  was,  is  now, 
And  shall  be  evermore.     Amen. 


r 


MARIA   SEABURY 

At  Newton  Highlands,  Mass.,  March  18,  1916, 
in  her  eighty-third  year,  died  MARIA  SEABURY, 
daughter  of  Charles  Saltonstall  and  Ruth  Haw- 
kins (Mount)  Seabury,  late  of  Stony  Brook,  L.  I., 
about  three  miles  from  Caroline  Church,  Se- 
tauket,  in  the  grave  yard  of  which  she  was  laid  to 
rest  on  the  21st  of  the  same  month.  Her  mother 
was  a  sister  of  William  and  of  Shepard  Mount, 
artists  of  distinction  in  their  day,  and  among  the 
earliest  of  the  members  of  the  National  Academy 
of  Design  in  New  York.  Her  father  was  the 
second  son  of  Rev.  Charles  Seabury,  the  only  son 
of  Bishop  Seabury  who  left  issue,  and  who 
succeeded  his  father  as  rector  of  St.  James',  New 
London,  and  for  the  last  thirty  years  of  his  life 
was  rector  of  Caroline  Church.  Her  Churchman- 
ship  was  of  the  type  of  those  men,  and  her  faith- 
ful devotion  to  all  the  duties  of  her  life  was  a 
beautiful  exemplification  of  the  principles  which 
by  tradition  from  them  she  had  received  to  hold. 
Of  deep  and  tenacious  affections,  strong  char- 
acter, luminous  intelligence,  and,  in  spite  of  her 
very  active  habits,  of  no  small  literary  cultiva- 
tion, she  afforded  a  remarkable  instance  of  large 
achievement,  with  very  slender  resources,  and  in 
the  face  of  constantly  recurring  adversities  al- 
ways mastered  by  her  cheery  forcefulness.  In 
the  cares  and  labors  of  her  life  she  may  well  be 
said  to  have  done  a  man's  part,  without  the  least 
abatement  of  the  grace  and  charm  which  emi- 
nently belonged  to  her  as  a  woman  ;  and  to  all 
who  were  permitted  to  know  her,  either  of  her 
own  or  later  generations,  the  memory  of  her  ex- 
ample will  always  be  as  of  the  light  that  shineth 
in  darkness.  W.  J.  S. 


DIED 

SEABURY — Died  in  Boston,  March  27th, 
CATHARINE  REGIXA  SEABURY,  of  Mendon,  Mass., 
daughter  of  the  late  Rev.  Samuel  Seabury, 
D.D.,  of  the  General  Theological  Seminary, 
and  of  Mary  Ann  Schuyler  Jones  Seabury,  his 
wife,  and  great  grand-daugner  of  the  Rt.  Rev. 
Samuel  Seabury,  D.D.,  first  Bishop  of  the 
American  Church. 

"Grant  unto  her,  O  Lord,  eternal  rest, 
And  let  light  perpetual  shine  upon  her." 


MEMORIAL 

EXCERPT   FROM   THE   MINUTES   OF   THE   FACULTY  OF 
THE    GENERAL    THEOLOGICAL    SEMINARY 

Upon  motion  of  Professor  Edmunds  the  fol- 
lowing resolution  was  unanimously  adopted  by  a 
rising  vote : 

"The  faculty  of  the  General  Theological  Semi- 
nary desire  to  put  on  record,  at  the  first  meeting 
of  the  academic  year,  their  sense  of  the  loss 
which  has  come  to  them  and  to  the  seminary  in 
the  death  of  the  Rev.  WILLIAM  JONES  SEABURY, 
D.D.  He  has  gone  to  his  rest  after  a  long  life 
^x  faithful  service  to  his  Master  and  to  the 
Church.  Of  his  seventy-nine  years  fifty  were 
spent  in  the  ministry,  and  forty-four  as  instructor 
and  professor  in  this  institution.  Six  of  the 
present  faculty  were  undergraduate  students 
under  him.  The  member  next  in  seniority  is  his 
academic  junior  by  thirty  years.  To  many  of  our 
alumni  he  has  been  the  single  representative  of 
former  days,  while  to  his  colleagues  he  has  been 
able  to  recall  precedents  and  happenings  in  the 
past  which  have  shed  light  on  the  problems  of  the 
present. 

"He  has  been  known  in  the  Church — as  be- 
came the  bearer  of  his  illustrious  name — as  the 
staunch  upholder  of  its  principles  and  order. 
He  has  placed  on  record  from  the  authentic  and 
abundant  sources  open  to  him  the  stories  of 
events  connected  with  the  beginnings  of  the 
American  episcopate.  He  has  been  the  wise  coun- 
sellor of  perplexed  bishops  and  priests.  He  has 
occupied  places  of  honor  and  usefulness  on  the 
governing  boards  of  many  institutions.  Every- 
where he  has  been  held  in  esteem  and  regard. 
But  to  his  colleagues  of  the  faculty  have  been 
given  a  closer  contact  and  a  privileged  intimacy. 
They  know  in  a  special  degree  the  vigor  and 
clearness  of  thought,  seen  in  these  later  years 
when  they  might  have  been  lessened  by  age  ;  the 
humor,  always  kindly,  which  banished  dulness 
and  sometimes  perhaps  prevented  differences  of 
judgment  from  becoming  too  sharp  ;  the  firm  con- 
victions combined  in  a  wonderful  way  with  a 
readiness  to  recognize  new  viewpoints  and  to 
accept  changed  methods  ;  the  consistent  courtesy 
as  of  a  Christian  gentleman  ;  the  unfailing  sym- 
pathy and  good  will  in  all  personal  relations  ;  the 
genuine  humility,  the  perfect  sincerity,  the  true 
devoutiaess,  which  marked  his  character.  They 
will  miss  him  greatly  as  counsellor  and  as  friend, 
and  his  name  will  be  carved  deep,  not  only  on  the 
stone  tablet  near  the  altar  where  he  delighted  to 
officiate  but  also  on  their  hearts.  May  he  rest 
in  peace." 

Attest : 

CHARLES  N.  SHEPARD,  Secretary. 

September  27,  1916. 


SAMUEL    SEABURY,  the   noted   jurist 
counsel  for  the   Hofstader  committee  inves- 
tigating the   New  York  City  administration, 
as  he  appears  spending  a  week-end  of  rest 
at  his  home  in  East  Hampton,  L.  I. 

WiH.    World     nhoto 


SAMUEL  SEABURY  BELL 

BRONXVILLE,  N.  Y. — At  the  age  of  75, 
Samuel  Seabury  Bell,  retired  banker  and 
cousin  of  the  Hofstadter  Legislative  In- 
vestigating counsel,  died  October  15th  at 
the  home  of  his  niece,  Miss  Gertrude 
Slade,  with  whom  he  had  resided  for  the 
past  ten  years.  He  had  been  retired  for 
several  years. 

Mr.  Bell,  who  was  a  son  of  the  late 
Samuel  Peters  Bell,  was  born  in  New 
York.  He  was  a  great-great-grandson  of 
the  Rt.  Rev.  Samuel  Seabury,  the  first 
Anglican  Bishop  of  the  United  States. 

While  his  two  brothers,  Charles  and 
Frank  Bell,  joined  the  surveying  part  of 
the  Canadian  Pacific  Railroad  when  the 
line  was  extended  to  the  West  Coast  and 
later  became  active  in  the  development  of 
British  Columbia,  Samuel  remained  in 
New  York  and  engaged  in  banking. 

Surviving  him,  besides  his  brothers,  is  a 
sister,  Miss  Lydia  Bell  of  Bronxville. 


LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 


OF 


THE  RT.  REV.  SAMUEL  SEABURY,  D.D. 


WORKS  BY  THE   SAME  AUTHOR. 

History  of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  Connecticut. 

From  1635  to  1865. 
Two  volumes,  8vo     ....    $6.00. 


Life  and  Correspondence  of  Samuel  Johnson,  D.  D. 

Missionary  of  the  Church  of  England  in  Connecticut,  and  First  President 
of  King's  College,  New  York. 

One  volume,  8vo     ....    $3.00. 


Life  and  Times  of  William  Samuel  Johnson,  LL.  D. 

First  Senator  in  Congress  from  Connecticut,  and  President  of  'Columbia 
College,  New  York. 

One  volume,  8vo      ....     $2.50. 


LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 


OF 


THE    RIGHT   REVEREND 


SAMUEL   SEABURY,  D.D 


FIRST  BISHOP  OF  CONNECTICUT,  AND  OF  THE  EPISCOPAL 
CHURCH  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  OF  AMERICA. 


E.  EDWARDS  ^EARDSLEY,  D.D.,  LL.D. 

RECTOR  OF  ST.  THOMAS'S   CHURCH,    NEW  HAVEN. 


BOSTON: 
HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN  AND   COMPANY. 

C&e  Ktoermfce  Press, 

1881. 


COPYRIGHT,  1880, 
Br  E.  EDWARDS  BEARDSLEY. 


RIVERSIDE,  CAMBRIDGE: 

STEREOTYPED    AND    FEINTED 
H.  0.  HOUQHTON  AND  COMPANY. 


To 

THE  MOST  REVEREND  ROBERT  EDEN,  D.  D., 

PRIMUS,  BISHOP  OF  MORAY,   ROSS,  AND  CAITHNESS, 

IN   GRATEFUL  RECOGNITION  OF  THE    BENEFITS  WHICH    HAVE    FLOWED   FROM    THB 
ACT  OF  HIS  PREDECESSOR  IN  CONSECRATING  THE 

FIRST  BISHOP  EOR  THE  EPISCOPAL  CHURCH 

IN  THE  UNITED  STATES   OF  AMERICA; 

AND  IN  TESTIMONY  OF  THE  BOND  OF  INTEREST  AND  FELLOWSHIP 
WHICH    SHOULD    EVER    BIND    TOGETHER    CHURCHES    OF    THE    ONE    FAITH, 

jts  Mum* 


IS  RESPECTFULLY  AND  CORDIALLY  DEDICATED 
BY 

THE  AUTHOR. 


M181331 


PBEFAOE. 


To  very  many  persons  it  has  been  a  matter  of 
wonder  that  so  distinguished  a  prelate  as  Seabury, 
who  bore  a  most  important  part  in  the  organization 
and  establishment  of  the  Church  in  this  country, 
should  be  left  so  long  without  an  extended  biogra- 
phy. It  is  not  necessary  to  inquire  into  the  causes  of 
this  neglect.  A  brief  and  imperfect  outline  of  his 
character  has  been  given  in  various  publications ;  but 
this  is  the  first  attempt  to  bring  together  the  leading 
events  of  his  earlier  and  his  later  life,  and  to  trace 
him,  as  he  may  be  seen  in  his  works  and  correspond- 
ence, from  colonial  times  to  the  end  of  his  episcopate. 

The  lapse  of  a  century  has  carried  away  some  of 
the  materials  for  such  a  biography,  and  one  may 
therefore  regret  that  it  had  not  been  commenced  be- 
fore all  the  great  actors,  with  whom  he  was  inti- 
mately associated,  had  descended  to  the  grave.  I 
have  no  doubt  that  the  Bishop  himself,  like  other 
public  men,  destroyed  many  papers  which  he  did  not 
believe  essential  to  the  history  of  the  period  in  which 
he  lived,  or  which  he  did  not  care  to  have -fall  into 
other  hands.  Those  that  have  been  preserved  and 


PREFACE. 

gathered  by  me  are  much  more  abundant  and  satis- 
factory than  was  anticipated  when  the  preparation  of 
this  volume  was  projected.  While  the  first  part  of 
his  journal  as  Bishop,  ending  with  May,  1791,  is  miss- 
ing, there  are  contemporary  documents  to  supply,  in 
a  sufficient  measure,  the  details  of  his  Episcopal  acts 
and  complete  the  view  of  his  character  and  services. 

He  began  life  as  an  enthusiastic  royalist,  and  as- 
serted his  political  opinions  with  a  sturdiness  and 
ability  which,  in  the  heats  of  the  Revolution,  put  him 
in  great  peril  and  distress.  As  a  fair  historian,  I 
have  allowed  him  to  tell  the  story  of  his  own  suffer- 
ings at  the  outbreak  of  the  war  which  led  to  the  in- 
dependence of  the  colonies ;  and  the  candid  reader 
will  observe  that  no  effort  has  been  made  to  conceal 
in  the  least  degree  this  portion  of  his  history,  or  to 
distort  the  plain  meaning  of  his  words  or  his  acts. 
The  time  has  long  since  gone  by  when  there  need  be 
any^  timidity  or  hesitation  in  speaking  freely  of  those 
upon  whom  obloquy  was  once  heaped  for  conscien- 
tiously espousing  the  cause  of  the  crown. 

The  name  of  Bishop  Seabury  is  identified  with  the 
Church  in  Connecticut.  It  was  in  making  researches 
and  collecting  materials  for  the  two  volumes  of  his- 
tory, which  have  already  been  published,  that  I  first 
conceived  the  idea  of  writing  his  life.  I  found  valu- 
able letters  and  documents  which  could  not  well  be 
used  in  the  historic  narrative,  and  it  seemed  to  me 
that  it  was  due  to  his  cherished  memory  to  give  them 
the  greater  prominence  of  a  distinct  consideration  and 


PREFACE.  ix 

a  separate  work.  Full  justice  cannot  be  done  to  the 
character  of  an  illustrious  individual  without  pre- 
senting, as  far  as  possible,  a  complete  picture  of  what 
he  thought  and  how  he  acted ;  what  he  was  in  him- 
self, in  his  principles,  in  his  purposes,  and  in  the 
deeper  sanctities  of  his  inner  life. 

Not  only  is  Bishop  Seabury  identified  with  the 
Church  in  Connecticut :  he  belongs  to  the  whole 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United  States  of 
America,  and  the  interest,  therefore,  in  his  biography 
should  be  general,  not  local.  No  one  who  wishes  to 
understand  thoroughly  the  character  of  the  men  who, 
in  our  early  ecclesiastical  councils,  held  fast  to  great 
principles,  and  worked  steadily  and  prayerfully  for 
the  union  and  consolidation  of  what  appeared  for  a 
time  to  be  opposing  parties,  will  fail  to  appreciate 
this  effort  to  bring  out  the  influence  of  the  first 
Bishop  of  Connecticut,  and  to  present  the  main  facts 
of  his  history  in  unbroken  chronological  order. 

I  am  indebted  to  several  gentlemen  for  kindly  an- 
swering letters  of  inquiry  and  furnishing  me  with  in- 
teresting incidents.  My  thanks  are  especially  due  to 
the  Rev.  William  J.  Seabury,  D.  D.,  a  great  grandson 
of  the  Bishop,  for  the  loan  of  the  MS.  Letter-book, 
and  for  information  which  has  been  of  much  service 
to  me ;  to  the  Rt.  Rev.  Dr.  William  Stevens  Perry, 
Bishop  of  Iowa,  for  the  use  of  the  MS.  volume  of  the 
Society's  letters,  New  York,  now  in  his  possession 
as  historiographer  of  the  Church  ;  and  to  the  Rev. 
Samuel  Hart,  M.  A.,  Professor  in  Trinity  College, 


X  PREFACE. 

Hartford,  for  valuable  pamphlets  and  free  access  to 
the  archives  of  the  diocese.  The  Kev.  Dr.  Thomas 
W.  Coit,  Professor  of  Ecclesiastical  History  in  the 
Berkeley  Divinity  School,  Middletown ;  Rev.  William 
Walker,  of  Monymusk,  Scotland,  and  Mr.  George 
Grub,  LL.  D.,  of  Aberdeen,  should  be  included  in  my 
acknowledgments,  as  they  have  favored  me  with 
facts  and  papers  which  add  t  interest  and  value  to  the 
work.  Due  credit  has  been  given  in  the  foot-notes 
for  all  the  matter  drawn  from  "  The  Historical  Notes 
and  Documents  "  which  constitute  the  third  volume 
of  Perry's  "  Half  Century  of  the  Legislation  of  the 
American  Church,"  or  "Journals  of  General  Conven- 
tions." 

The  frontispiece  was  made  expressly  for  this  work. 
The  original  portrait,  now  in  the  Library  of  Trinity 
College,  was  engraved  in  1786  by  the  celebrated 
English  engraver,  William  Sharp,  and  the  plate  af- 
fectionately inscribed  to  Benjamin  West,  Esq.,  by 
Duche*,  his  grateful  friend  and  pupil.  Copies  of  this 
print  have  become  exceedingly  rare,  and  the  engrav- 
ing which  forms  the  frontispiece  of  the  present  vol- 
ume will  supply,  what  many  have  long  wished  to 
obtain,  a  good  likeness  of  Bishop  Seabury. 

NEW  HAVEN,  November,  1880. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

BIRTH  AND  PARENTAGE;  EDUCATION  OF  HIS  FATHER,  AND  CON- 
FORMITY TO  EPISCOPACY  ;  MISSIONARY  AT  NEW  LONDON, 
AND  REMOVAL  TO  HEMPSTEAD;  THE  SON  GRADUATES  AT  YALE 
COLLEGE,  AND  IS  APPOINTED  A  CATECHIST;  GOES  ABROAD 
AND  IS  ORDAINED  FOR  NEW  BRUNSWICK;  PROMOTION  TO  THE 
LIVING  OF  JAMAICA,  AND  MARRIAGE;  RELIGIOUS  CONDITION 
OF  HIS  CURE,  AND  WHITEFIELD'S  ITINERANCY 

A.  D.  1729--1764. 


CHAPTER  II. 

DEATH  OF  HIS  FATHER,  AND  SCARCITY  OF  CLERGYMEN;  PLEAS 
FOR  AN  AMERICAN  EPISCOPATE,  AND  DR.  CHANDLER'S  PUBLI- 
CATIONS; REMOVAL  TO  WESTCHKSTER,  AND  INSTITUTION  INTO 

THE  RECTORSHIP  OF  ST.  PETER'S  CHURCH;  MISSIONARY  WORK, 
AND  STATE  OF  HIS  PARISH;  POLITICAL  TROUBLES,  AND  CON- 
TINENTAL CONGRESSES  ;  DEFENSE  OF  THE  CROWN,  AND  ANONY- 
MOUS PAMPHLETS;  CLERICAL  FRIENDS  AND  THEIR  INTIMACY  17 

A.  D.  1764-1775. 


CHAPTER  IH. 

LETTER  TO  THE  SECRETARY;  FIRMNESS  OF  ALLEGIANCE;  AR- 
REST AND  IMPRISONMENT;  MEMORIAL  TO  THE  GENERAL  AS- 
SEMBLY OF  CONNECTICUT;  RELEASE  AND  RETURN  TO  HIS 

FAMILY  ;  FRESH  TROUBLES,  AND  DECLARATION  OF  INDEPEN- 
DENCE; CLOSE  OF  HIS  CHURCH,  AND  ACCOUNT  OF  HIS  PERSE- 
CUTIONS   33 

A.  D.  1775-1776. 


Xii  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

ESCAPE  TO  LONG  ISLAND,  AND  DESECRATION  OF  HIS  CHURCH; 
LETTER  TO  THE  SOCIETY,  AND  DEATH  OF  MISSIONARIES;  RES- 
IDENCE IN  NEW  YORK  CITY,  AND  MISSIONARY  AT  STATEN 
ISLAND;  APPOINTED  CHAPLAIN,  AND  BURNING  OF  TRINITY 
CHURCH;  SUFFERINGS  AND  LOSSES  OF  THE  CLERGY  .  .  48 

A.  D.  1776-1780. 


CHAPTER  V. 

CONTINUED  RESISTANCE  OF  THE  COLONIES;  TREACHERY  OF  AR- 
NOLD, AND  HIS  PLOT  TO  DESTROY  THE  AMERICAN  CAUSE; 
EXPEDITION  AGAINST  NEW  LONDON,  AND  MASSACRE  OF  THE 
GARRISON  IN  FORT  GRISWOLD;  SIEGE  OF  YORKTOWN,  AND 
SURRENDER  OF  LORD  CORNWALLIS;  TREATY  OF  PEACE,  AND 
INDEPENDENCE  OF  THE  COLONIES  ;  LOYALISTS  AND  THEIR 
TREATMENT  ;  THE  CLERGY  AND  THE  CHURCH  .  .  V  .  62 

A.  D.  1780-1783. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

CLERGY  IN  CONNECTICUT  BEFORE  THE  WAR,  AND  AT  ITS  CLOSE; 
CONVENTION  IN  WOODBURY,  AND  APPOINTMENT  OF  A  BISHOP; 
TESTIMONIALS  FROM  REV.  MR.  JARVIS  AND  THE  CLERGY  OF 
NEW  YORK  IN  FAVOR  OF  DR.  SEABURYJ  LETTERS  TO  THE 
ARCHBISHOP  OF  CANTERBURY,  AND  DEPARTURE  OF  DR.  SEA- 
BURY  FOR  ENGLAND  .  .  ....  .  .  .76 

A.  D.  1783. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

SCHEME  OF  THE  REV.  MR.  WHITE,  AND  OPPOSITION  OF  THE 
CLERGY  OF  CONNECTICUT  ;  CONVENTION  IN  WOODBURY  AND 
NUMBER  PRESENT;  SYMPATHY  IN  MASSACHUSETTS,  AND  LET- 
TERS OF  REV.  MR.  FOGG;  ARRIVAL  OF  DR.  SEABURY  IN  LON- 
DON, AND  IMPEDIMENTS  TO  HIS  CONSECRATION;  CORRESPOND- 
ENCE WITH  THE  CLERGY,  AND  CONVENTION  IN  WALLINGFORD  97 

A.  D.  1783-1784. 


CONTENTS.  xiii 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

SETTLEMENT  OP  HIS  FAMILY  IN  NEW  LONDON,  AND  LETTERS  TO 
THE  CLERGY  OF  CONNECTICUT  ;  SCOTTISH  EPISCOPACY,  AND 
DR.  BERKELEY'S  CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  BISHOP  SKINNER; 
WAITING  FOR  AN  ACT  OF  PARLIAMENT,  AND  NOTHING  ACCOM- 
PLISHED FOR  HIS  AID;  THE  DANISH  SUCCESSION,  AND  CART- 
WRIGHT  OF  SHREWSBURY;  APPLICATION  TO  THE  SCOTTISH 
BISHOPS  .......  .  . .  .  .  .  117 

A.  D.  1784. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

BISHOP  KILGOUR'S  LETTER,  AND  DR.  SEABURY'S  REPLY;  ARRIVAL 
IN  ABERDEEN,  AND  OPPOSITION  OF  DR.  SMITH;  CONSECRA- 
TION, AND  SYNOD  OF  BISHOPS;  CONCORDATS,  AND  ADDRESS  TO 
THE  CLERGY  OF  CONNECTICUT  J  PREACHES  IN  ABERDEEN,  AND 
BISHOP  JOLLY'S  PRAYER  ;  RETURN  TO  LONDON,  AND  LETTER 
TO  MR.  BOUCHER 140 

A.  D.  1784-1785. 


CHAPTER  X. 

ARRIVAL  IN  LONDON,  AND  NEW  PERPLEXITIES  J  OPPOSITION  OF 
GRANVILLE  SHARPE  AND  OTHERS;  LETTER  TO  THE  CLERGY 
OF  CONNECTICUT,  AND  FRIENDSHIP  OF  AMERICAN  LOYALISTS; 
PECUNIARY  SUPPORT,  AND  LETTER  TO  THE  VENERABLE  SOCI- 
ETY; BISHOP  SKINNER'S  INTEREST,  AND  LETTERS  OF  DR. 

CHANDLER 163 

A.  D.  1 785. 


CHAPTER  XL 

CONSECRATION  SERMON,  AND  OBJECTIONS  TO  IT;  LETTERS  OF 
BISHOPS  LOWTH  AND  SKINNER;  CHARLES  WESLEY,  AND  HIS 
OPINION  OF  BISHOP  SEABURY;  MEETINGS  TO  ORGANIZE  THE 
CHURCH  IN  MARYLAND  AND  PENNSYLVANIA  ;  CONVENTIONS 
AT  NEW  BRUNSWICK  AND  NEW  YORK;  TITLE  OF  THE  CHURCH, 
AND  DR.  WHITE'S  INFLUENCE 182 

A.  D.  1784-1785. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

LETTER  OF  BISHOP  SKINNER  TO  MR.  BOUCHER,  AND  HIS  ANSWER; 
ARRIVAL  OP  BISHOP  SEABURY  AT  NEWPORT,  AND  LANDING 
AT  NEW  LONDON;  CONVENTION  AT  MIDDLETOWN,  AND  HIS 
RECOGNITION  BY  THE  CLERGY;  ORDINATION,  AND  SERMON  OF 
MR.  LEAMING;  CONVOCATION,  AND  THE  CLERGY  OF  MASSA- 
CHUSETTS; COMMITTEE  ON  ALTERATIONS  IN  THE  LITURGY, 
AND  BISHOP'S  CHARGE  ..  .  .  .  -  .  .  .  .  201 

A.  D.  1785-1786. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

COURTESIES  TO  THE  SOUTHERN  CLERGY,  AND  PROPOSALS  TO 
CHANGE  THE  LITURGY  I  BISHOP  SEABURY'S  LETTER  TO  DR. 
SMITH,  AND  REASONS  FOR  NOT  ATTENDING  CONVENTION  IN 

PHILADELPHIA;  CONVOCATION  IN  NEW  HAVEN,  AND  RELUC- 
TANCE TO  ALTER  THE  LITURGY;  ORDINATION  OF  SEVEN  CAN- 
DIDATES, AND  LETTER  TO  THE  SCOTTISH  BISHOPS  J  BISHOP 
SEABURY  AND  HIS  CLERGY  DENOUNCED  AS  NON-JURORS  AND 
JACOBITES,  AND  MR.  LEAMING'S  DEFENSE.  .  .  .  .  226 

A.  D.  1785. 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

CONVENTION  IN  PHILADELPHIA,  AND  ADOPTION  OF  AN  ECCLESI- 
ASTICAL CONSTITUTION;  APPLICATION  FOR  BISHOPS  IN  THE 

ENGLISH  LINE,  AND  "  THE  PROPOSED  BOOK;  "  LETTER  OF  MR. 
PROVOOST,  AND  HOSTILITY  TO  BISHOP  SEABURY;  FEARS  OF 
FRIENDS,  AND  REPLY  OF  THE  BISHOPS  ;  ANOTHER  CONVENTION 
IN  PHILADELPHIA,  AND  ITS  PROCEEDINGS 244 

A.  D.  1785-1786. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

BISHOP  SEABURY'S  COMMUNION  OFFICE,  AND  CONVOCATION  AT 
DERBY;  LITURGICAL  CHANGES,  AND  LETTER  TO  GOVERNOR 
HUNTINGTCN;  SECOND  CHARGE,  AND  EPISCOPAL  RESIDENCE; 
POVERTY  OF  THE  CLERGY  AND  PEOPLE,  AND  SUPPORT  OF  THE 

BISHOP  .  ...  .  .  .  .  .  .  .263 

A.  D.  1786-1787. 


CONTENTS.  xv 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

CONVENTION  AT  WILMINGTON,  AND  DOCUMENTS  FROM  ENGLAND; 
BISHOPS  ELECT,  AND  THEIR  DEPARTURE  FROM  AMERICA;  DR. 
GRIFFITH,  AND  LETTER  OF  BENJAMIN  MOORE;  DRS.  WHITE 
AND  PROVOOST  CONSECRATED,  AND  CONVOCATION  IN  WAL- 

LINGFORD;    CORRESPONDENCE    WITH    BISHOPS  SKINNER,   PRO- 
VOOST, AND  WHITE 287 

A.  D.  1786-1787. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

CONVOCATION  AT  STAMFORD,  AND  ITS  RESULTS;  LETTER  OF 
LEAMING,  AND  EFFORTS  TO  CONCILIATE;  OBSTACLES  TO  UNION, 
AND  BISHOP  FOR  MASSACHUSETTS  PROPOSED;  WORK  OF  SEA- 
BURY,  AND  CONVOCATION  AND  CONSECRATION  AT  NEW  LON- 
DON; THE  MITRE  AND  WHEN  IT  WAS  WORN  ....  304 

A.    D.    1787. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  MR.  PARKER,  AND  VISIT  TO  BOSTON; 
CHARITY  SERMON,  AND  ORDINATIONS  ;  STAY  IN  THE  CITY, 
AND  CALL  UPON  DR.  BYLES;  LETTER  OF  LEAMING,  AND  CON- 
VOCATION AT  NORTH  HAVEN 320 

A.   D.    1788. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

VALIDITY  OF  CONSECRATION,  AND  LETTER  TO  BISHOP  DRUM- 
MOND;  DEATH  OF  CHARLES  EDWARD,  AND  RELIEF  FOR  THE 
SCOTTISH  EPISCOPAL  CHURCH;  ATTACHMENT  OF  HIS  CLERGY, 
AND  LETTERS  TO  TILLOTSON  BRONSON  J  CONVENTION  TO  MEET 
IN  PHILADELPHIA,  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  BISHOP  WHITE  335 

A.  D.  1788-1789. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

CONVENTION  IN  PHILADELPHIA,  AND  APPLICATION  FOR  THE 
CONSECRATION  OF  REV.  EDWARD  BASS;  DEATH  OF  DR.  GRIF- 
FITH, AND  HIS  FUNERAL;  RESULTS  OF  THE  CONVENTION,  AND 


xvi  CONTENTS. 

ADJOURNMENT;  LETTER  OF  DR.  SMITH,  AND  PERSISTENCE  OF 
BISHOP  PROVOOST;  BISHOP  SEABURY  AND  THE  EASTERN 
CHURCHES  IN  PHILADELPHIA,  AND  LETTER  OF  LEAMING  .  357 

A.    D.    1789. 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  CONVENTION,  AND  REVISION  OF  THE  LIT- 
URGY ;  HOUSE  OF  BISHOPS,  AND  REJECTION  OF  THE  ATHANA- 

SIAN  CREED;  MISUNDERSTANDING  BETWEEN  THE  TWO  HOUSES, 
AND  PRAYER  FOR  THE  PRESIDENT  AND  ALL  IN  AUTHORITY; 
CHANGES  IN  THE  COMMUNION  OFFICE,  AND  BISHOP  SEABURY'S 
INFLUENCE  J  CONVOCATION  AT  LITCHFIELD,  AND  DR.  LEAM- 
ING'S  RETIREMENT  .  .  .  .  .-  '-,...-  .  .  373 

A.  D.  1789-1790. 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

CONVOCATION  IN  NEWTOWN,  AND  RATIFICATION  OF  THE  PRAYER 
BOOK;  PROTEST  OF  REV.  JAMES  SAYRE,  AND  USE  OF  THE 
NICENE  CREED;  DR.  SEABURY  DECLARED  BISHOP  IN  RHODE  ISL- 
AND, AND  LETTERS  TO  LAYMEN,'  DR.  COKE  AND  HIS  PROPO- 
SITION; OFFICIAL  VISITATION,  AND  JOURNEY  TO  PORTSMOUTH; 
PUBLICATION  OF  SERMONS,  AND  CONVOCATION  AT  WATERTOWN  ; 
PARISH  IN  STRATFORD,  AND  LETTER  TO  DR.  DIBBLEE  .  .  389 

A.    D.    1790-1792. 

CHAPTER  XXIH. 

CONTENTION  IN  STRATFORD,  AND  EFFORTS  OF  MR.  BOWDEN 
TO  CONCILIATE  THE  PEOPLE  ;  INFLUENCE  OF  MR.  SAYRE,  AND 
TROUBLES  IN  WOODBURY  ;  CONVENTION  IN  NEW  HAVEN,  AND 
LAITY  FIRST  INTRODUCED  ;  SUPPORT  OF  THE  BISHOP,  AND 
EPISCOPAL  VISITATION  J  SERMON  BEFORE  GENERAL  CONVEN- 
TION, AND  CONSECRATION  OF  DR.  CLAGGETT  ;  CONVOCATION 
AT  HUNTINGTON  AND  PARISH  INDEPENDENCE;  CONVENTION 
AT  M1DDLETOWN,  AND  ORDINATION 411 

A.   D.    1792-1793. 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

OFFICE  FOR  BURIAL  OF  INFANTS,  AND  POINTED  PSALTER;  VISIT- 
ATION TO  RHODE  ISLAND,  AND  DISORDER  IN  NARRAGANSETT  J 


CONTENTS.  xvii 

CONSECRATION  OF  CHURCHES,  AND  CONVOCATION  IX  NEW  MIL- 
FORD  ;  LETTER  TO  WILLIAM  STEVENS,  AND  CONVENTION  IN 
NEW  HAVEN;  EPISCOPAL  ACADEMY,  CONVOCATION  IN  CHESH- 
IRE, AND  CONSECRATION  AT  WATERTOWN  ;  ANNUAL  CONVEN- 
TION, AND  ESTABLISHMENT  OF  THE  ACADEMY  ....  430 

A.    D.    1793-1795. 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

VISITATION,  AND  CONVENTION  IN  RHODE  ISLAND;  GENERAL  CON- 
VENTION IN  PHILADELPHIA,  AND  NO  DEPUTIES  FROM  NEW 
ENGLAND;  OFFENSIVE  PAMPHLET,  AND  COURSE  OF  ITS  AU- 
THOR; CONSECRATION  OF  CHURCHES,  AND  LAST  VISITATION; 
DEATH  AND  FUNERAL;  REMOVAL  AND  RE-INTERMENT  OF  HIS 
REMAINS;  CHARACTER  AND  CONCLUSION 447 

A.  D.  1795-1796. 
APPENDIX  A. 

ADDRESS     OF     CONVENTION     OF     CLERGYMEN     IN    NEW     YORK     TO 

THE    VENERABLE    SOCIETY       ........    463 

APPENDIX  B. 

MONUMENTS    TO    BISHOP    SEABURY 405 

APPENDIX    C. 

BISHOP  WHITE'S  MS.  NOTE  ON  THE  CHURCH  IN  AMERICA,  AND 
LIST  OF  THE  CONSECRATION  OF  SCOTTISH  BISHOPS  .  .  .  469 

APPENDIX   D. 
BISHOP  SEABURY'S  COMMUNION  OFFICE 474 

APPENDIX  E. 

OFFICE    FOR    THE    BURIAL    OF    INFANTS    .- 488 

b 


LIFE  AND   OOEEESPONDENOE 


OF 


SAMUEL   SEABURY. 


CHAPTER  I. 

BIKTH  AND  PARENTAGE  ;  EDUCATION  OF  HIS  FATHER,  AND  CON- 
FORMITY TO  EPISCOPACY  ;  MISSIONARY  AT  NEW  LONDON,  AND 
REMOVAL  TO  HEMPSTEAD  ;  THE  SON  GRADUATES  AT  YALE  COL- 
LEGE, AND  IS  APPOINTED  A  CATECHISTJ  GOES  ABROAD  AND  IS  OR- 
DAINED FOR  NEW  BRUNSWICK  ;  PROMOTION  TO  THE  LIVING  OF 
JAMAICA,  AND  MARRIAGE  ;  RELIGIOUS  CONDITION  OF  HIS  CURE, 
AND  WHITEFIELD'S  ITINERANCY. 

A.  D.  1729-1764. 

THE  name  of  Samuel  Seabury  occupies  an  impor- 
tant place  in  the  early  history  of  our  American 
Church,  and  it  will  be  the  object  of  the  following 
pages  to  bring  together  the  memorials  of  his  life,  and 
present  them  in  their  due  sequence  and  order. 

He  was  born  in  Groton,  Conn.,  November  30,  1729, 
and  was  the  second  son  of  Samuel  Seabury,  by  his 
wife  Abigail,  daughter  of  Mr.  Thomas  Mumford. 
Groton  was  also  the  native  place  of  his  father,  a  son 
of  John  Seabury  who  removed  from  Duxbury,  Mass., 
about  the  year  1700,  and  first  settled  at  Stonington; 
but  in  1704  he  exchanged  his  plantation  in  that  place 
for  one  in  Groton,  opposite  New  London.  Congrega- 


2  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

tionalism  was  then  the  only  form  of  religion  in  the 
colony,  and  John  Seabury,  being  its  earnest  supporter 
and  holding  the  office  of  deacon  in  the  society  at 
Groton,  taught  his  family  the  doctrines  which  he  him- 
self accepted,  and,  with  a  view  to  educating  him  for 
the  ministry,  sent  his  fourth  son,  Samuel,  to  college. 

It  has  been  stated  that  he  first  entered  Yale,  and 
was  a  member  of  that  institution  when  Rector  Cutler 
and  others  announced  their  withdrawal  from  the  Con- 
gregational order,  and  their  conformity  to  Episcopacy. 
Much  excitement  and  controversy  ensued,  and  dur- 
ing the  disturbance,  several  students  left,  and  among 
them  young  Seabury,  who  is  enrolled  with  the  gradu- 
ating class  of  Harvard  College,  in  1724,  being  at  that 
time  eighteen  years  of  age.1  It  is  proper  to  men- 
tion, however,  that  while  this  statement  may  be  en- 
tirely correct,  nothing  has  been  found  to  verify  it 
upon  the  records  of  either  institution.  Dr.  Johnson, 
of  Stratford,  in  recommending  him  to  the  "Honor- 
able Board,"  spoke  of  him  as  having  "  been  educated 
and  graduated  in  the  colleges  in  this  country,"  and 
Seabury  himself,  afterwards,  in  a  letter  introducing 
Ebenezer  Punderson,  who  took  his  bachelor's  degree 
in  1726,  said,  "  He  hath  been  educated  at  Yale  Col- 
lege, Connecticut,  where  I  had  a  particular  acquaint- 
ance with  him,  and  where  he  always  had  the  charac- 
ter of  a  sober  person." 

In  1726,  he  became  the  first  preacher  to  "  the 
Second  Ecclesiastical  Society,"  organized  by  permis- 
sion of  the  General  Assembly  of  Connecticut,  in  that 
part  of  the  town  called  North  Groton.  About  this 
time  he  married  and  was  brought  in  contact  and  as- 

1  Hallam's  Annals  of  St.  James's  Church,  New  London,  p.  31. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  3 

sociation  with  members  of  the  Church  of  England. 
His  father-in-law,  Thomas  Mumford,  came  originally 
from  Narragansett,  R.  I.,  and  was  the  uncle  by  mar- 
riage of  Dr.  McSparran,  the  celebrated  missionary  of 
the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  that 
region.  When  the  New  London  parish  was  formed 
under  the  auspices  of  this  missionary,  who  was  the 
nearest  and  most  accessible  clergyman  of  the  English 
Church,  Mr.  Mumford  as  one  of  the  founders  figured 
conspicuously,  and  subsequently,  in  the  appointment 
of  officers,  he  was  chosen  the  first  warden.  The  re- 
ligious predilections  of  his  wife's  family,  or  the  public 
agitation  of  the  subject,  perhaps  both,  led  Mr.  Sea- 
bury  to  examine  the  claims  of  Episcopacy,  and  early 
in  the  spring  of  1730,  he  had  ceased  to  officiate  for 
the  Congregationalists  in  North  Groton,  and  declared 
his  intention  of  crossing  the  ocean  to  obtain  Holy 
Orders.  He  appeared  before  the  Honorable  Society 
on  the  21st  of  August,  1730,  was  ordained  deacon 
and  priest  by  the  Bishop  of  London,  and  returned  to 
Connecticut  with  the  appointment  of  a  missionary  to 
New  London,  on  a  salary  of  .£50  per  annum,1  the 
churchmen  of  that  place,  Groton,  and  other  parts  ad- 
jacent having  built  a  church  and  petitioned  for  his 
services  as  a  gentleman  born  and  bred  in  the  colony, 
whom  they  well  knew  and  in  whom  they  had  great 
confidence. 

His  son,  the  future  bishop,  was  born  while  he  was 
ministering  to  the  Congregationalists  at  North  Gro- 
ton, and  was  but  an  infant  in  the  arms  of  his  mother 
when  the  father  embarked  for  England.  He  was 
baptized  December  14,  1729,  by  Rev.  John  Owen, 

1  Hawkins's  Missions  of  the  Church  of  England,  p.  294. 


4  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

Congregational  minister  at  Groton  ;  but  his  nurture 
was  wholly  in  the  Episcopal  Church,  and  his  boyhood 
was  passed  amid  scenes  of  extraordinary  religious  ex- 
citement. The  followers  of  Whitefield,  ignorant  and 
fanatical,  seduced  many  of  the  inhabitants  of  New 
London  and  its  vicinity  into  the  wildest  extrava- 
gances, and  on  one  occasion,  in  the  midst  of  their  re- 
ligious delirium,  they  assembled  in  a  public  street  on 
a  Sunday,  and  burnt  rich  apparel  and  a  large  num- 
ber of  theological  books,  among  which  was  included 
Bishop  Beveridge's  "  Private  Thoughts  on  Religion." 

The  mission  at  Hempstead,  on  Long  Island,  be- 
came vacant  in  1742  by  the  removal  of  Dr.  Jenney 
to  Philadelphia,  and  the  elder  Seabury,  who  had  done 
good  service  at  New  London,  was  transferred  to  this 
important  sphere  of  duty,  where  he  was  called  to  en- 
counter a  spirit  of  religious  frenzy  and  intolerance 
not  unlike  that  which  he  had  witnessed  in  Connecti- 
cut. He  passed  the  remainder  of  his  days  in  Hemp- 
stead,  and  as  grammar  schools  had  not  then  been  es- 
tablished in  every  important  town,  he  did  what  many 
of  the  clergy  of  the  time  were  constrained  to  do  :  he 
added  to  his  pastoral  work  the  duties  of  a  teacher. 

His  son  Samuel  was  admitted  a  member  of  the 
freshman  class  in  Yale  College  in  1744,  and,  soon 
after  he  took  his  degree,  the  father  informed  the  So- 
ciety for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel,  that  a  num- 
ber of  people  at  Huntington,  a  town  about  eighteen 
miles  from  his  mission,  had  conformed  to  Episcopacy, 
and  built  an  edifice  for  the  worship  of  Almighty  God 
according  to  the  Liturgy  of  the  Church  of  England. 
He  had  frequently  officiated  in  that  place,  and  at  the 
desire  of  the  people,  his  son  had  read  prayers  and 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  5 

sermons  there  under  his  direction.  The  following 
extract  from  a  letter  to  the  secretary,  dated  Septem- 
ber 30,  1748,  shows  that  he  had  already  dedicated 
him  to  the  work  of  the  ministry,  and  was  giving  him 
the  best  advantages  in  his  power  for  becoming  useful 
in  that  vocation. 

My  son  is  now  studying  Physic,  and  before  he  be  of  age 
to  present  himself  to  the  Society  in  person,  I  intend,  God 
willing,  that  he  shall  spend  one  or  two  years  at  Edinburgh 
in  the  study  of  Physic.  I  have  been  led  into  this  manner 
of  educating  him,  from  an  hint  taken  from  one  of  the  Hon- 
orable Society's  Abstracts  concerning  their  designed  economy 
of  their  College  at  Barbadoes.  I  shall  therefore  esteem  it  a 
great  favor  if  the  Society  will  be  pleased  to  approve  this 
method,  and  give  him  a  place  on  their  books,  and  grant 
what  may  be  recommended  in  his  favor  by  our  Revd<  Com- 
missary in  regard  to  Huntington. 

My  son  is  not  yet  nineteen  years  of  age,  and  as  I  believe 
he  may  be  employed  at  Huntington  in  reading  prayers  and 
sermons,  and  in  catechising  to  good  purpose,  before  he  will  be 
of  age  for  Holy  Orders,  I  presume  to  hope  the  Society  will 
employ  him  at  Huntington  with  some  small  allowance.1 

He  served  in  the  capacity  of  a  catechist  nearly  four 
years,  and  was  allowed  a  salary  of  £10  per  annum. 
His  relinquishment  of  the  position  is  thus  noted  by 
his  father  in  a  letter  dated  at  Hempstead,  October 
13,  1752 :  "Agreeable  to  the  Honorable  Society's  in- 
structions to  him,  my  son  laid  down  his  place  of  cate- 
chist in  July  last,  and  embarked  from  New  York  for 
Edinburgh  in  August,  in  order  to  spend  one  year 
there  in  the  study  of  physic  and  anatomy ;  after  that 
intending  to  present  himself  to  the  Honorable  Society 
in  order  to  make  a  tender  of  his  future  life  to  the 

1  MSS.  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel. 


6  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

service  of  his  great  Master,  under  their  direction. 
With  this  intent  he  left  me,  and  I  hope  he  may  be 
found  worthy  of  their  notice  and  regard.  The 
church  has  gained  in  Huntington  by  his  assistance."  l 
It  was  not  a  very  uncommon  thing  for  clergymen  in 
America  at  that  period  to  acquire  a  certain  degree 
of  medical  science  as  a  means  of  accomplishing  good, 
and  the  regular  practitioners  then,  as  now,  had  a 
right  to  be  displeased  with  this  encroachment  upon 
the  business  of  their  profession.  In  an  anonymous 
letter  to  the  Bishop  of  London,  1763,  complaint  was 
made  that  some  of  the  missionaries  in  the  country 
parishes  acted  as  physicians  and  surgeons,  to  the  det- 
riment of  the  Church. 

No  evidence  has  been  discovered  in  the  records  of 
the  University  of  Edinburgh  that  Seabury  even  en- 
rolled, and  he  is  not  in  the  list  of  those  who  have 
graduated  in  medicine  from  that  institution.  "  As  re- 
gards enrollment  or  matriculation,  the  absence  of  his 
name  is  not  so  decisive ;  for  the  records  of  the  uni- 
versity at  that  time  were  not  so  sufficient  as  evidence 
of  at  least  occasional  attendance  by  a  student  as  they 
would  be  now."  2  A  little  more  light  is  shed  upon  his 
connection  with  the  institution  in  the  Society's  Ab- 
stracts, where  mention  is  made  of  his  appointment  as 
a  missionary  to  New  Brunswick  "  out  of  regard  to 
the  request  of  the  inhabitants,  and  to  the  united  testi- 
mony of  the  Episcopal  clergy  of  New  York  in  his  fa- 
vor, as  a  youth  of  good  .genius,  unblemished  morals, 
sound  principles  in  religion,  and  one  that  had  made  as 
good  proficiency  in  literature  while  in  America,  as  the 

1  MSS.  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel. 

2  MS.  Letter,  Prof.  A.  C.  Fraser,  March,  1879. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  7 

present  state  of  learning  there  would  admit  of ;  and 
he  was  gone  for  further  improvement  to  the  Univer- 
sity of  Edinburgh ;  and  Mr.  Seabury,  being  of  full 
age  for  Holy  Orders,  presented  himself  to  the  Society 
in  the  latter  end  of  last  summer  from  the  Univer- 
sity of  Edinburgh,  and  upon  examination  being  found 
worthy,  he  was  ordained  deacon  and  priest,  and  soon 
after  set  out  for  New  Brunswick,  where  the  Society 
hopes  he  will  follow  the  example  of  his  worthy  father, 
and  prove  a  very  diligent  and  useful  missionary  in 
his  station." l  It  seems  quite  evident  that  while  at 
Edinburgh  he  first  became  acquainted  with  the  Epis- 
copal Church  in  Scotland,  with  whose  College  of 
Bishops  he  was  afterwards  so  closely  identified.2 

He  had  attained  the  age  of  twenty-four  years  when 
he  applied  for  admission  to  Holy  Orders.  Dr.  Sher- 
lock, then  occupying  the  metropolitan  see,  was  bend- 
ing under  the  weight  of  age  and  bodily  infirmities, 
and  incapable  of  performing  the  functions  of  his 
office,  though  his  mind  was  still  unclouded,  and  he 
retained  his  powerful  faculties  and  discriminative 
judgment.  Dr.  John  Thomas,  Bishop  of  Lincoln, 

1  Abstract  of  Proceedings  from  February,  1753,  to  February,  1754, 
p.  57. 

2  The  story  has  often  been  told  that,  on  the  Sunday  after  his  arrival, 
he  inquired  of  his  host  where  he  might  find  an  Episcopal  service.     The 
penal  laws  were  then  in  force  which  prohibited  the  Episcopal  clergy  in 
Scotland  from  officiating  except  in  private  houses  for  four  persons  only, 
besides  the  family;  or,  if  in  an  uninhabited  building,  for  a  number  not 
exceeding  four.     His  host  replied,  "I  will  show  you;  take  your  hat  and 
follow  me,  but  keep  barely  in  my  sight,  for  we  are  watched  with  jealousy 
by  the  Presbyterians."     He  led  him  through  winding,  narrow  lanes  and 
unfrequented  streets,  and  finally  disappeared  suddenly  into  an  old  build- 
ing several  stories  high,  followed  by  Seabury,  to  an  upper  room  where  a 
little  band  had  gathered  to  worship  God  in  the  forms  of  the  Liturgy  ac- 
cording to  the  dictates  of  their  conscience. 


8  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

therefore,  acting  in  his  behalf,  ordained  Mr.  Seabury 
a  deacon  on  St.  Thomas's  day,  1753,  and  two  days 
after  (Sunday,  December  23d),  he  was  advanced  to 
the  priesthood  by  Dr.  Richard  Osbaldiston,  Bishop  of 
Carlisle,  acting  also  for  the  Bishop  of  London. 

The  Rev.  J.  Wetmore,  of  Rye,  N.  Y.,  who  had  sent 
a  testimonial  to  the  venerable  Society  in  his  favor, 
recommended  him  for  the  cure  of  New  Brunswick,  in 
New  Jersey,  vacant  by  the  removal  of  Rev.  Mr.  Wood 
to  Nova  Scotia,  and  the  Bishop  of  London,  under  date 
of  December  23,  1753,  licensed  and  authorized  him 
to  perform  the  office  of  a  priest  in  that  province ; 
and  the  Society  accordingly  gave  him  the  appoint- 
ment to  New  Brunswick  with  a  salary  of  ,£50  per 
annum.  He  returned  to  America  and  arrived  at  his 
mission  on  the  25th  of  May,  1754,  where  he  found  a 
stone  church  "  nearly  finished,"  and  a  congregation 
that  greeted  him  with  a  hearty  welcome. 

His  ministry  in  this  place  was  too  short  to  be  pro- 
ductive of  much  good  or  to  be  marked  by  many 
events.  Having  been  promoted  to  the  living  of  Ja- 
maica, L.  I.,  he  was  duly  inducted  into  that  parish 
on  the  12th  of  January,  1757,  by  Sir  Charles  Hardy, 
at  that  time  the  provincial  governor  of  New  York. 
This  change  brought  him  back  to  the  neighborhood 
of  his  youthful  associations  and  "nearer  to  a  most 
excellent  father,  whom  he  dearly  loved  and  whose 
conversation  he  highly  valued."  It  must  have  been 
acceptable  to  him  on  other  accounts,  for  he  had  as- 
sumed new  responsibilities  and  entered  into  the  do- 
mestic relations.  On  the  12th  of  October,  1756,  just 
three  months  prior  to  his  induction  into  the  living 
of  Jamaica,  he  married  Mary,  daughter  of  Mr.  Ed- 
ward Hicks,  of  New  York. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  9 

He  found  enough  to  do  in  the  sphere  to  which  he 
had  been  transferred,  and  evils  to  contend  with  that 
taxed  his  best  energies  and  abilities.  The  circuit  of 
his  ministerial  labors  reached  out  beyond  his  imme- 
diate cure,  and  Flushing,  in  the  same  county,  was 
one  of  the  stations  where  he  was  frequently  called  to 
officiate.  He  gave  a  sad  picture  of  its  religious  con- 
dition in  his  report  to  the  Society  in  1759.  "  Flush- 
ing," said  he,  "  in  the  last  generation  the  grand  seat 
of  Quakerism,  is  in  this  the  seat  of  infidelity,  —  a 
transition  how  natural !  Bred  up  in  an  entire  neglect 
of  all  religious  principles,  in  hatred  to  the  clergy  and 
in  contempt  of  the  sacraments,  how  hard  is  their  con- 
version, especially  as  they  disown  the  necessity  of  any 
redemption  !  At  Jamaica,  open  infidelity  has  not 
made  so  great  a  progress ;  a  general  remissness  in  at- 
tending divine  service,  however,  prevails,  though  I 
know  not  from  what  particular  cause." 

This  indifference  to  Christian  truth  and  Christian 
ordinances  was  a  source  of  grief  to  him  in  his  minis- 
trations. No  measure  of  fidelity  on  his  part  seemed 
at  first  to  awaken  any  direct  interest  in  his  work,  or 
to  turn  aside  the  broad  current  that  was  carrying 
everybody  along  towards  the  awful  vortex  of  unbe- 
lief. Six  months  after  he  made  the  report  referred 
to  above,  he  wrote  again  to  the  Society  in  the  same 
melancholy  and  discouraging  strain :  "  Such  is  the 
effect  of  deism  and  infidelity  (for  the  spreading  of 
which  Quakerism  has  paved  the  way),  which  have 
here  been  propagated  with  the  greatest  zeal  and  the 
most  astonishing  success,  that  a  general  indifference 
towards  all  religion  has  taken  place  ;  and  the  too  com- 
mon opinion  seems  to  be  that  they  shall  be  saved 


10  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

without  either  of  the  Christian  sacraments,  without 
any  external  worship  of  God,  —  in  short,  without  the 
mediation  of  Christ,  as  well  as  with ;  and  even  among 
those  who  profess  themselves  members  of  the  Church 
of  England,  a  very  great  backwardness  in  attending 
her  service  prevails,  and  particularly  with  regard  to 
the  holy  sacrament  of-  the  Lord's  Supper  ;  so  great  is 
their  aversion  to  it,  or  neglect  of  it,  that  I  fear  the 
number  of  communicants  at  present  scarce  exceeds 
twenty." 

It  is  easy  to  see  that  a  young  and  zealous  clergy- 
man, who  had  the  prosperity  of  the  Church  so  much 
in  his  heart,  could  not  fail  to  be  deeply  affected  by 
the  gloomy  prospects  of  his  mission.  A  new  country 
in  a  forming  state  needed,  in  a  marked  degree,  all 
the  supports  of  a  right  faith  and  a  right  practice, 
and  hence  he  felt  that  any  doctrine  or  set  of  princi- 
ples which  led  people  to  look  with  indifference  upon 
religious  rites  was  deleterious  in  its  influence,  and 
corrupting  in  its  nature.  He  saw  no  good  in  the 
absence  of  liturgical  worship,  —  at  least,  in  his  view, 
there  was  no  good  in  a  negative  system  of  faith 
which  referred  everything  to  the  inward  light,  and 
rejected  alike  the  voice  of  the  Church  and  all  ex- 
ternal revelation.  His  patient  and  steady  ministra- 
tions, however,  after  a  time  began  to  tell  upon  the 
inhabitants,  and  at  a  later  date,  he  was  enabled  to 
make  a  better  report  of  the  spiritual  condition  of  his 
cure.  "  Things  are  considerably  mended,"  he  wrote, 
"  especially  at  Flushing,  which  has  ever  been  the  seat 
of  Quakerism  and  infidelity.  Many  young  people  of 
both  sexes  have  steadily  attended  divine  service  the 
past  summer  (whose  parents  are  either  Quakers  or 
deists),  and  behaved  with  great  decency." 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  11 

Mr.  Seabury  was  acquiring  experience  in  his  min- 
isterial work,  and  fitting  himself  more  and  more  to 
grapple  with  the  evils  by  which  he  was  surrounded. 
While  he  could  not  discern  all  the  fruits  which  under 
God  he  had  hoped  would  come  from  his  labors,  he  saw 
improvement  in  many  things,  and  in  1762  informed 
the  Society  that  the  church  was  gradually  gaining  in 
strength,  and  that  a  more  serious  turn  of  mind  ?egan 
to  manifest  itself,  —  particularly  in  Flushing,  where 
the  white  congregation  had  increased  from  twenty  to 
eighty.  At  Jamaica,  his  principal  charge,  there  were 
one  hundred  and  twenty  families  connected  with  the 
church,  from  which  came  twenty-nine  communicants, 
—  more  than  one  sixth  of  the  whole  number  of  fami- 
lies resident  in  the  place.  The  missionaries  of  the 
Society  were  required  by  its  rules  to  transmit  a  state- 
ment of  the  number  of  their  families,  baptisms,  and 
communicants,  together  with  such  general  informa- 
tion in  regard  to  the  sects  as  might  show  their  rela- 
tive strength ;  and  thus  the  history  of  each  mission, 
as  it  was  presented  from  time  to  time,  was  before  the 
authority  at  home,  and  carefully  considered.  This 
rendered  them  exceedingly  vigilant  and  observing, 
and  their  details  became  something  more  than  dry 
statistics. 

Whatever  may  now  be  thought  of  Seabury's  opin- 
ion of  the  tendency  of  Quakerism,  it  was  deliberately 
formed  and  honestly  entertained.  But  a  new  source 
of  disquietude  arose  in  1764.  In  that  year,  White- 
field,  who  for  the  sixth  time  had  lately  arrived  in 
America  from  England,  visited  his  mission,  and  pro- 
duced the  usual  excitement  which  everywhere  at- 
tended his  ministrations.  The  populace  followed  him 


12  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

and  hung  with  enthusiasm  upon  his  extraordinary 
eloquence.  Large  congregations  continually  gathered 
to  hear  him,  and  Whitefield  himself,  in  a  letter  to  a 
friend,  speaking  of  this  visit,  said,  "  My  late  excur- 
sions upon  Long  Island  I  trust  have  been  blessed. 
It  would  surprise  you  to  see  above  one  hundred  car- 
riages at  every  sermon  in  the  New  World." l 

There  was  no  turning,  for  the  time,  the  current  of 
popular  feeling  which  set  in  the  direction  of  White- 
field's  ministrations.  Some  from  sympathy  with  his 
doctrines,  some  from  admiration  of  his  earnestness 
and  power,  and  more  from  curiosity  to  hear  the  won- 
derful man  and  join  with  the  crowds,  were  drawn  to 
his  sermons  and  helped  to  stimulate  and  extend  the 
public  sensation.  He  was  under  no  restraint,  and 
though  episcopally  ordained,  such  had  been  his  er- 
ratic course  that  the  clergy  of  the  Church  of  England 
in  the  American  colonies  had  opposed  his  policy  and 
refused  to  admit  him  to  their  pulpits.  He  was  in 
no  way  connected  with  the  Society  for  the  Propa- 
gation of  the  Gospel,  and  was  only  mentioned  in  its 
proceedings  as  his  letters  and  conduct  reflected  upon 
the  character  of  its  missionaries,  and  interfered  with 
their  work.  He  left  a  legacy  of  discord  and  confu- 
sion behind  him  wherever  he  went.  No  measure  of 
zeal  and  earnestness  as  a  preacher,  and  no  pretense 
of  spiritual  illumination,  could  justify  his  neglect  of 
the  solemn  obligations  assumed  at  his  ordination,  and 
his  disregard  of  the  ritual  and  usages  of  the  Book  of 
Common  Prayer.  His  extravagances,  great  as  they 
were,  excited  the  displeasure  of  those  in  England 
who  had  befriended  and  aided  him,  and  his  censori- 

1  Memoirs  of  Whitefield  t  p.  181. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  13 

ousness  and  want  of  charity,  added  to  his  irregulari- 
ties, alienated  him  from  their  confidence  and  affec- 
tions. It  was  in  reply  to  charges  which  he  sent 
home  to  the  Society  against  its  missionaries  in  this 
country,  that  Seeker,  then  Bishop  of  Oxford,  wrote 
him  in  1741 :  "  You  must  permit  me  to  say,  and  I 
do  it  with  sincere  good  will  to  you,  that  I  am  per- 
suaded you  are  much  too  severe  in  what  you  have 
printed  concerning  your  brethren  of  the  clergy  in 
this  nation,  and  therefore  you  may  have  been  too 
severe  in  what  you  have  written  concerning  those 
abroad,  especially  as  I  find  that  many  accounts  differ- 
ent from  yours  are  sent  to  the  Society,  concerning 
their  missionaries,  by  persons  in  all  appearance  well 
deserving  of  credit." 

Whitefield  had  lost  his  reverence  for  the  teaching 
and  authority  of  the  Church,  and,  like  all  enthusiasts, 
he  could  discover  defects  in  the  theology  of  others 
from  which  he  fancied  himself  to  be  free.  He  as- 
sailed the  works  of  Tillotson,  and  "  The  Whole  Duty 
of  Man,"  —  affirming  that  the  archbishop  "  knew  no 
more  of  Christianity  than  Mahomet,"  and  he  im- 
pugned the  authority  of  writings  which  had  been  a 
guide  and  solace  to  thousands  of  Christians  of  un- 
doubted intelligence  and  piety.  His  followers  im- 
proved oftentimes  upon  his  illiberality  and  enthu- 
siasm, and  the  Presbyterians,  or  Congregationalists, 
especially  in  New  England,  who  at  first  favored  his 
evangelism,  became  divided  in  opinion,  and,  while 
some  adhered  to  him  firmly,  others  rejected  him  as 
interfering  with  the  customs  of  the  churches  and  the 
peace  and  usefulness  of  the  settled  pastors.  The  op- 
position to  him  among  them  was  as  violent  as  among 


14  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

the  clergy  and  members  of  the  Church  of  England. 
The  General  Association  of  Connecticut,  which  met 
in  June,  1745,  expecting  that  he  would  make  a  tour 
through  the  colony  during  the  summer,  passed  a  reso- 
lution, declaring  him  to  be  "the  faulty  occasion  of 
many  errors  in  doctrine  and  disorders  in  practice," 
and  "  that  if  the  said  Mr.  Whitefield  should  make  his 
progress  through  this  government,  it  would  by  no 
means  be  advisable  for  any  of  our  ministry  to  admit 
him  into  their  pulpits,  or  for  any  of  our  people  to  at- 
tend his  administrations." l  The  Old  and  New  Lights 
were  parties  which  grew  out  of  his  itinerancy. 

The  feeling  towards  Whitefield  at  the  time  he  vis- 
ited Long  Island  appears  to  have  changed  with  some 
of  the  southern  clergy  of  the  Church  of  England. 
He  had  either  become  less  denunciatory  of  those  wrho 
differed  from  him  in  regard  to  the  system  of  itiner- 
ancy and  certain  points  of  doctrine,  or  a  score  of 
years  had  accustomed  people  to  the  effects  of  his  ex- 
travagances and  worn  away  the  edge  of  their  resist- 
ance. The  Kev.  Hugh  Neill,  a  missionary  at  Oxford, 
Pa.,  writing  to  the  secretary  of  the  Society,  October 
17,  1763,  and  speaking  of  the  unity  in  his  parish, 
said :  "  How  long  it  will  continue  so,  God  only  knows. 
'For  Mr.  Whitefield  arriving  lately  among  us,  and 
meeting  with  a  most  cordial  reception  from  the  Epis- 
copal clergy  of  Philadelphia,  has  thrown  the  clergy 
and  laity  in  the  country  into  a  very  great  conster- 
nation. The  unanimity  among  the  Church  clergy, 
both  in  city  and  country,  for  this  three  and  twenty 
years  past  in  opposing  him  prevented  his  hurting  the 
Church  (a  few  individuals  excepted).  The  divisions 

1  TrumbulPs  History,  vol.  ii.,  p.  190. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  15 

that  he  created  among  the  dissenters  in  this  province, 
and  all  over  America,  were  examples  sufficient  to  warn 
us  from  splitting  upon  the  same  rock.  But  such  has 
been  the  fatality  of  our  city  brethren  that  they  have 
received  him  with  open  arms  and  still  continue  to  fol- 
low him  from  the  church  to  the  meeting-houses,  and 
from  thence  to  the  church  again,  with  a  greater  de- 
gree of  veneration  (I  really  believe)  than  if  his  Grace 
of  Canterbury  was  to  condescend  to  pay  them  a 
visit."  l 

Seabury,  like  his  northern  brethren,  was  in  entire 
sympathy  with  the  views  of  the  writer  of  this  letter. 
His  early  education  and  love  of  order,  to  say  nothing 
about  his  abhorrence  of  canonical  and  rubrical  irregu- 
larities, led  him  to  disapprove  of  Whitefield's  course, 
and  to  dread  the  effects  of  his  preaching  within  the 
limits  of  his  parish.  He  knew  too  much  of  that 
"  continual  succession  of  strolling  preachers  "  among 
the  other  religious  bodies  who  had  adopted  his  senti- 
ments and  method  of  instruction,  and  who  misrep- 
resented the  Church  as  popish,  to  believe  that  no 
mischief  would  come  to  the  cause  of  truth  by  the 
introduction  of  the  great  revivalist.  He  reported, 
however,  that  none  of  his  own  people  were  finally 
led  astray,  while  many  of  them  appear  to  have  been 
more  seriously  impressed  by  his  earnest,  yet  concilia- 
tory manner  of  presenting  and  defending  the  doc- 
trines of  the  Church.  A  letter  addressed  to  the 
secretary,  and  dated  October  6,  1764,  very  well  ex- 
presses his  fears,  and  the  actual  result  of  this  visit  of 
Whitefield:  — 

Since  my  last  letter  to  the  Honorable  Society,  we  have 
1  Hist.  Collections,  Penn.,  p.  354. 


16  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

had  a  long  visit  from  Mr.  Whitefield  in  this  colony,  where  he 
has  preached  frequently,  especially  in  the  city  of  New  York, 
and  in  this  island,  and  I  am  sorry  to  say  he  has  had  more 
influence  than  formerly,  and  I  fear  has  done  a  great  deal  of 
mischief ;  his  tenets  and  method  of  preaching  have  been 
adopted  by  many  of  the  dissenting  teachers,  and  this  town 
in  particular  has  a  continual,  I  had  almost  said  a  daily,  suc- 
cession of  strolling  preachers  and  exhorters ;  and  the  poor 
Church  of  England  is  on  every  occasion  misrepresented  as 
popish,  and  as  teaching  her  members  to  expect  salvation  on 
account  of  their  own  works  and  deservings.  I  have  in  the 
most  moderate  manner  endeavored  to  set  these  things  in 
their  true  light,  and  I  think  not  without  success :  none  of 
my  people  have  been  led  away  by  them,  though  I  have  not 
been  without  apprehensions  on  their  account,  and  I  hope 
that  friendly  disposition  and  mutual  intercourse  of  good  of- 
fices which  have  always  subsisted  between  the  Church  peo- 
ple and  dissenters  since  I  have  been  settled  here,  and  which 
I  have  constantly  endeavored  to  promote,  will  meet  with  but 
little  interruption. 

An  acquaintance  of  more  than  six  years  with  the 
people  of  his  parish  had  led  Mr.  Seabury  to  look  with 
alternate  hope  and  fear  to  its  future  condition.  His 
own  support  was  not  as  liberal  as  he  had  anticipated, 
and  promises  made  when  lie  first  entered  upon  his 
ministry  in  the  place  were  still  unfulfilled.  The  in- 
fluence of  the  Quakers  had  corrupted  the  principle  of 
Christian  generosity,  for  they  "  considered  it  as  a 
mark  of  an  avaricious  and  venal  spirit  for  a  minister 
to  receive  anything  of  his  people  by  way  of  support." 
Men  in  all  periods  of  Christendom  have,  for  the  most 
part,  shown  themselves  too  ready  to  take  advantage 
of  the  least  encouragement,  to  withhold  from  the 
Lord  the  offerings  which,  in  some  shape,  are  justly 
his  due. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  .       17 


CHAPTEK  II. 

DEATH  OF  HIS  FATHER  AND  SCARCITY  OF  CLERGYMEN;  PLEAS  FOR 
AN  AMERICAN  EPISCOPATE  AND  DR.  CHANDLER'S  PUBLICATIONS;  RE- 
MOVAL TO  WESTCHESTER  AND  INSTITUTION  INTO  THE  RECTORSHIP 
OF  ST.  PETER'S  CHURCH;  MISSIONARY  WORK  AND  STATE  OF  HIS  PAR- 
ISH; POLITICAL  TROUBLES  AND  CONTINENTAL  CONGRESSES;  DEFENSE 
OF  THE  CROWN  AND  ANONYMOUS  PAMPHLETS;  CLERICAL  FRIENDS 
AND  THEIR  INTIMACY. 

A.  D.  1764-1775. 

THE  death  of  his  father,  on  the  15th  of  June,  1764, 
was  an  event  which  not  only  filled  him  with  per- 
sonal sorrow,  but  deprived  the  neighboring  parish  at 
Hempstead  of  its  faithful  missionary.  More  than 
twenty  years  he  had  filled  that  post,  and  during  seven 
of  them  the  son  had  been  favored  with  the  opportu- 
nity of  taking  his  immediate  counsel  and  guidance  in 
troublesome  matters.  The  following  letter,  written 
by  the  bereaved  widow  to  her  brother-in-law  in  Rhode 
Island,  sheds  some  light  upon  the  family  history,  and 
the  condition  in  which  the  children  were  left. 

HEMPSTEAD,  July  15,  1764. 

DEAR,  BROTHER, — As  you  are  to  me  in  a  double  capacity, 
both  in  regard  to  the  relation  between  us,  and  in  regard  to 
our  unhappy  condition,  for  I  heard  by  report  that  my  sister 
is  dead,  but  I  have  not  had  a  line  from  you,  at  which  I  am 
somewhat  surprised.  As  to  my  own  deplorable  state,  my 
dear  husband  left  me  and  his  family,  the  19th  of  June,  to  go 
2 


18  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

to  England,  from  whence  he  returned  the  7th  of  June,  a 
sick,  and  I  may  say,  a  dying  man,  for  he  lived  one  painful 
week,  and  then  resigned  his  soul  into  the  arms  of  his  dear 
Saviour. 

Dear  Sir :  Your  own  heart  will  better  suggest  to  you 
what  I  feel  than  any  words  I  can  make  use  of.  I  can  only 
say,  I  have  lost  one  of  the  best  husbands,  and  am  left  with 
six  children ;  the  eldest  son  and  daughter  married ;  the 
youngest  son  with  a  merchant  in  New  York,  and  the  other 
three  with  me,  —  one  of  which  is  a  daughter  of  nineteen,  one 
a  son  of  seventeen,  and  the  other  a  daughter  of  six  years. 

Dear  Sir:  I  am  both  a  widow  and  a  stranger.  My  husband 
did  not  lay  up  treasures  on  earth ;  though,  I  have  reason  to 
think,  he  did  in  Heaven,  where  no  rust  doth  corrupt ;  and 
my  whole  trust  is  in  Him  who  hath  said,  "  He  is  the  Father 
of  the  fatherless,"  and  the  widow's  God. 

Sir,  as  there  is  in  your  hands  a  legacy  left  me  by  my 
mother,  I  should  be  glad  to  know  of  you  what  I  may  expect 
from  it,  for  I  shall  be  in  want  of  it  by  next  May. 

If  you  write  to  me,  please  direct  to  the  care  of  Mr.  Henry 
Remsen,  Jr.,  Hanover  Square,  New  York,  the  gentleman 
with  whom  my  son  lives,  and  he  will  forward  the  letter. 

I  have  no  more  to  say,  sir,  but  to  commend  you  and  your 
children  to  God  Almighty,  and,  begging  your  prayers  for  me 
and  mine, 

I  am,  sir,  your  affectionate  sister  and  humble  servant, 

ELIZABETH  SEABUBY.1 
To  JAMES  HELME,  ESQ.,  SOUTH  KINGSTOWN. 

The  vacancy  at  Hempstead  very  naturally  imposed 
upon  Mr.  Seabury  the  duty  of  looking  out  for  a  suit- 
able minister  to  supply  the  place.  For  twelve  years 
he  had  been  acquainted  with  Leonard  Cutting,  —  ed- 
ucated at  Eton  and  Cambridge,  and  for  a  long  time 
a  tutor  in  King's  (now  Columbia)  College,  but  then 

1  Updike's  History  Narragansett  Church,  pp.  134,  135. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  19 

serving  as  a  missionary  in  his  former  cure  at  New 
Brunswick,  N.  J.  In  the  summer  of  1765,  he  in- 
closed to  the  Society  a  petition  from  the  church 
wardens  and  vestrymen  of  the  parish  of  Hempstead, 
asking  that  Mr.  Cutting  might  be  transferred  to  that 
place.  The  people  much  desired  him  for  their  minis- 
ter, and  Seabury  supported  the  petition  with  a  state- 
ment that  he  was  well  qualified  to  supply  the  parish, 
and  would  do  "  real  service  therein  to  the  cause  of 
virtue  and  religion  in  general,  and  to  the  interest  of 
the  Church  in  particular."  Accordingly  the  change 
was  authorized,  and  Mr.  Cutting  continued  in  charge 
at  Hempstead  till  1784. 

The  want  of  clergymen  of  the  Church  of  England 
in  the  American  colonies  became  more  urgent  as 
death  made  inroads  into  their  ranks.  The  necessity 
of  going  home  for  Holy  Orders  deterred  many  from 
entering  the  ministry,  and  of  those  who  ventured  on 
the  voyage  so  large  a  proportion  fell  by  the  way  that 
it  was  disheartening  to  think  of  the  sacrifice.  Sea- 
bury  did  not  hesitate  to  speak  out  his  mind  on  this 
subject,  and,  like  other  missionaries,  to  plead,  as  occa- 
sion offered,  for  an  American  Episcopate.  He  was 
present  at  the  meeting  of  a  voluntary  association  of 
the  Episcopal  clergy  of  New  York  and  New  Jersey, 
when  the  matter  was  fully  discussed  and  the  unani- 
mous opinion  reached,  that  "  fairly  to  explain  the  plan 
on  which  American  bishops  had  been  requested,  to  lay 
before  the  public  the  reasons  of  this  request,  to  answer 
the  objections  that  had  been  made,  and  to  obviate 
those  that  might  be  otherwise  conceived  against  it, 
was  not  only  proper  and  expedient,  but  a  matter  of 
necessity  and  duty." 


20  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

The  Kev.  Dr.  Johnson,  of  Stratford,  had  previously 
suggested  to  Dr.  Chandler,  the  rector  at  Elizabeth- 
town,  the  preparation  of  an  appeal  to  the  public  in 
behalf  of  the  Church  of  England  in  America,  and  this 
action  of  the  clergy  ripened  the  suggestion  and  led 
him  to  write  and  publish  the  works  which  appeared 
successively  in  1767  and  1771,  and  provoked  so  much 
opposition  from  the  enemies  of  Episcopacy  in  this 
country.  "  The  Appeal  to  the  Public,"  "  The  Appeal 
Defended,"  and  "The  Appeal  farther  Defended" 
were  issued  at  a  period  when  the  minds  of  men  were 
agitated  in  the  colonies  with  contests  and  jealousies 
about  political  rights  and  privileges.  Those  who 
wrote  against  the  object  of  the  Appeal  endeavored 
to  take  advantage  of  the  existing  troubles,  and  repre- 
sented that  the  taxation  of  the  colonies  and  the  pro- 
posal of  sending  bishops  to  America  were  parts  of  one 
general  system,  and  unfriendly  to  political  and  relig- 
ious liberty. 

It  was  before  the  controversy  which  sprung  up  on 
the  appearance  of  Dr.  Chandler's  publications,  that 
Seabury  addressed  a  letter  to  the  secretary  of  the 
Society,  dated  April  17,  1766,  from  which  the  follow- 
ing extract  is  made  :  — 

We  have  lately  had  a  most  affecting  account  of  the  loss  of 
Messrs.  Giles  and  Wilson,  the  Society's  missionaries,  the 
ship  they  were  in  being  wrecked  near  the  entrance  of  Dela- 
ware Bay,  and  only  four  persons  saved  out  of  twenty-eight ; 
their  death  is  a  great  loss  in  the  present  want  of  clergymen 
in  these  colonies,  and  indeed,  I  believe  one  great  reason  why 
so  few  from  this  continent  offer  themselves  for  Holy  Orders 
is  because  it  is  evident  from  experience  that  not  more  than 
four  out  of  five  who  have  gone  from  the  northern  colonies 
have  returned.  This  is  an  unaccountable  argument  for  the 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  21 

necessity  of  bishops  in  the  colonies.  The  poor  Church  of 
England  in  America  is  the  only  instance  that  ever  happened 
of  an  Episcopal  Church  without  a  bishop,  and  in  which  no 
orders  could  be  obtained  without  crossing  an  ocean  of  three 
thousand  miles  in  extent ;  without  bishops  the  Church  can- 
not flourish  in  America,  and  unless  the  Church  be  well  sup- 
ported and  prevail,  this  whole  continent  will  be  overrun  with 
infidelity  and  deism,  Methodism,  and  New  Light,  with  every 
species  and  every  degree  of  skepticism  and  enthusiasm ;  and 
without  a  bishop  upon  the  spot,  I  fear  it  will  be  impossible  to 
keep  the  Church  herself  pure  and  undefiled. 

The  clergy  did  their  utmost  to  preserve  the  true 
faith  and  convince  the  authorities  at  home  of  the  un- 
wisdom of  leaving  the  colonies  in  such  a  deplorable 
condition.  Those  in  New  York,  with  some  of  their 
brethren  from  Connecticut  and  New  Jersey,  adopted 
the  plan  of  "  holding  voluntary  and  annual  conven- 
tions "  for  the  purpose  of  considering  the  best  meth- 
ods of  promoting  the  welfare  of  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land and  thwarting  the  schemes  of  her  adversaries.1 

The  decease  of  the  elder  Seabury  sundered  one 
strong  tie  that  bound  the  son  to  Jamaica.  Besides 
this,  the  living  was  insufficient  to  meet  the  demands 
of  his  growing  family.  The  people  had  not  redeemed 
the  pledge  which  they  gave  him  on  coming  among 
them,  to  provide  a  suitable  parsonage,  and  there  was 
no  prospect  of  any  immediate  effort  in  this  direction. 
He  received,  therefore,  with  favor,  the  overtures 
made  to  him  by  the  wardens  and  vestrymen  of  St. 
Peter's  Church,  at  Westchester,  and  intimated  to  the 
Society  his  wish  to  accept  the  offer  of  that  mission. 
The  proposition  was  readily  acceded  to,  and  he  re- 
moved to  Westchester,  and  on  the  3d  of  December, 

1  Appendix  A. 


22  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

1766,  was  in  due  form  "admitted,  instituted,  and  in- 
ducted "  into  the  rectorship  of  the  parish  under  the 
authority  of  Sir  Henry  Moore,  then  captain-general 
and  governor-in-chief  in  and  over  the  province  of 
New  York  and  territories  depending  thereon.  Here 
he  had  an  average  congregation  of  about  two  hun- 
dred, and  adopted,  as  one  means  of  imparting  relig- 
ious instruction,  the  practice  of  preaching  at  funerals 
in  the  more  remote  districts,  when  people  assembled 
who  never  came  together  at  other  times. 

His  settlement  at  Westchester  did  not  separate 
him  from  association  with  his  clerical  friends,  for  ac- 
cess to  those  who  dwelt  in  New  York  and  New  Jer- 
sey was  as  convenient  as  before,  and  with  greater 
care  than  in  these  days,  the  clergy,  then  few  in  num- 
ber, visited  each  other  to  interchange  hopes  and  fears 
and  confer  together  in  a  private  way  on  the  best  in- 
terests of  the  church.  After  he  had  been  in  this 
mission  nearly  a  year  he  wrote  to  the  Society  to  give 
information  of  its  state,  and  the  following  extract 
from  his  letter  has  its  bright  and  its  dark  sides  :  — 

The  congregation  at  Westchester  is  very  unsteady  in  their 
attendance ;  sometimes  there  are  more  than  the  church, 
which  is  a  small,  old,  wooden  building,  can  contain,  at  other 
times  very  few,  generally  near  two  hundred.  The  communi- 
cants are  few,  the  most  I  have  had  has  been  twenty-two ; 
two  new  ones  have  been  added  since  I  have  been  here.  At 
Eastchester,  which  is  four  miles  distant,  the  congregation  is 
generally  larger  than  in  Westchester.  The  old  church  in 
which  they  meet  as  yet  is  very  small  and  cold.  They  have 
erected,  and  just  completed  the  roof  of  a  large,  well-built 
stone  church,  in  which  they  have  expended,  they  say,  seven 
hundred  pounds  currency ;  but  their  ability  seems  to  be  ex- 
hausted, and  I  fear  I  shall  never  see  it  finished.  I  applied 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  23 

last  winter  to  his  excellency  Sir  Henry  Moore,  for  a  brief  in 
their  favor,  but  the  petition  was  rejected.  Since  I  came  into 
this  parish  I  have  preached  every  other  Sunday  at  West- 
chester  in  the  morning,  and  have,  after  prayers  in  the  after- 
noon, catechised  the  children  and  explained  the  Catechism 
to  them.  I  was  the  more  inclined  to  do  this,  as  they  have 
never  been  used  to  any  evening  service  at  all,  and  as  there 
seemed  to  be  but  little  sober  sense  of  religion  amongst  the 
lower  sort  of  people,  I  was  in  hopes  by  this  means  to  lay 
some  foundation  of  religious  knowledge  in  the  younger  part 
of  the  congregation.  I  cannot  yet  boast  of  the  number  of 
my  catechumens,  which  is  but  ten,  but  most  of  them  repeat 
the  Catechism  extremely  well.  There  are  also  a  considera- 
ble number  of  young  people  who  attend  to  hear,  and  are 
very  attentive.  I  should  be  very  much  obliged  to  the  So- 
ciety for  a  number  of  Lewis's  Catechisms,  and  some  small 
Prayer  Books,  and  such  other  tracts  as  they  think  proper ; 
these  things  presented  to  the  children  and  younger  people 
by  their  minister,  I  have  found  by  my  own  experience,  give 
them  impressions  in  his  favor,  and  dispose  them  to  come  to 
church  and  to  make  their  responses. 

At  Westchester  I  have  baptized  six  white  children,  and 
one  mulatto  adult ;  at  Eastchester  eight  white,  and  at  New 
Rochelle  seven  white  and  two  negro  children.  Before  I  left 
Jamaica,  I  baptized  there  four  adults  and  three  infants.  I 
have  made  two  visits  there  since,  and  baptized  one  adult,  two 
white  children,  and  three  black  ones ;  and  I  must  do  the  peo- 
ple at  Newtown  the  justice  to  inform  the  Society,  that  since 
my  removal  they  sent  me  £20  currency.  With  regard  to 
the  income  of  this  parish,  the  salary,  by  an  act  of  assembly, 
is  £50  currency  —  the  exchange  from  New  York  to  London 
being  generally  from  £70  to  £80  for  £100  sterling.  Burial 
fees  there  are  here  none;  but  the  more  wealthy  families 
sometimes  give  the  minister  a  linen  scarf  on  these  occasions. 
Marriage  fees  from  one  to  four  Spanish  dollars  ;  but  far  the 
greater  number  go  to  an  Independent  teacher  in  the  parish 
of  Rye,  because  his  ceremony  is  short  and  they  have  nothing 


24  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

to  say.  Possibly  these  fees  may  amount  to  .£5  or  <£  6  a  year. 
The  parsonage  house  is  so  much  out  of  repair  that  it  will  cost 
,£100  currency  to  make  it  comfortable,  and  the  glebe  has  cost 
me  near  £20  to  repair  the  fences ;  when  it  is  put  in  good 
order,  it  would,  I  believe,  rent  for  <£25  per  annum.  Some  of 
the  principal  people  have  been  endeavoring  to  prevail  on  the 
congregation  to  make  up  the  deduction  from  the  Society's 
salary  by  subscription,  but  have  not  succeeded,  owing  to  the 
great  expense  they  have  been  and  must  be  at  here  in  buying 
and  repairing  their  parsonage  house,  for  which  they  are  yet 
in  debt  £100,  and  to  the  necessity  they  will  shortly  be  under 
of  rebuilding  their  church ;  and  the  Eastchester  people  are 
exhausted  by  the  church  they  have  undertaken  to  build. 
I  must  defer  writing  concerning  that  part  of  the  parish 
which  is  under  Mr.  Munroe's  care  till  my  information  is 
more  correct.  The  professed  dissenters  in  this  parish  are  not 
numerous;  some  Calvinistic  or  Presbyterian  French  at  New 
Rochelle,  a  few  Presbyterians  at  Eastchester,  and  some 
Quakers ;  at  Westchester  a  good  many  Quakers.  But  there 
are  many  families,  especially  among  the  lower  classes,  who 
do  not  even  pretend  to  be  of  any  religion  at  all. 

The  missionaries,  by  the  instructions  of  the  Society, 
were  required  to  encourage  the  setting  up  of  schools 
for  the  teaching  of  children,  and  an  important  advan- 
tage was  gained  where  these  were  successfully  estab- 
lished. The  Society  appointed  schoolmasters  in  some 
places,  and  appropriated  annually  small  stipends  to- 
wards their  support.  A  brother  of  the  rector,  Na- 
thaniel Seabury,  held  such  a  position  in  Westchester 
and  retired  in  1768,  when  another  gentleman  was  ap- 
pointed, who  continued  his  services  in  that  capacity 
for  several  years.  The  rector  subsequently  reported 
this  school  to  be  in  a  prosperous  condition  and  the 
children  to  be  advancing  in  knowledge. 

The  impolitic  measures  of  the  British  government 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  25 

were  beginning  to  agitate  the  colonies  and  to  fore- 
shadow the  troubles  of  the  Revolution.  The  Stamp 
Act  had  been  passed  and  a  Congress  had  been  held  in 
New  York,  composed  of  delegates  from  nine  of  the 
thirteen  colonies,  who  considered  the  grievances  of 
the  people  and  sent  petitions  to  the  king  and  Parlia- 
ment for  its  immediate  repeal.  A  year  elapsed  from 
the  time  of  its  enactment  before  the  odious  measure 
was  rescinded,  and  then  the  repeal  was  accompanied 
by  a  declaratory  act,  asserting  the  right  of  Parlia- 
ment to  bind  the  colonies  in  all  cases  whatsoever, 
and,  as  a  consequence,  the  public  irritation  was  by 
no  means  allayed.  Liberty  was  a  word  upon  which 
many  changes  were  rung,  and  political  questions  were 
discussed  with  excited  feelings  and  widely  opposing 
views.  Americans,  for  the  most  part,,  claimed  the 
rights  of  British  subjects  and  denied  the  power  or 
authority  of  Parliament  to  tax  the  colonies  without 
their  consent.  This  was  the  real  foundation  of  the 
whole  dispute  which  resulted  in  independence. 

Seabury  did  not  sympathize  with  the  vehement 
advocates  for  liberty.  He  knew  that  "unbounded 
licentiousness  in  manners  and  insecurity  to  private 
property  "  must  be  the  unavoidable  consequence  of 
extreme  measures.  So  early  as  March,  1770,  he  wrote 
the  secretary  of  the  Society :  "The  violent  party  heats 
which  prevail  in  this  colony  as  well  as  in  the  others 
engross  at  present  the  attention  of  the  people.  But 
I  think  that  even  the  disturbances  will  be  attended 
with  some  advantage  to  the  interests  of  the  Church. 
The  usefulness  and  truth  of  her  doctrines,  with  re- 
gard to  civil  government,  appear  more  evident  from 
those  disorders  which  other  principles  have  led  the 


26  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

people  into.  This  is  particularly  remarked  and  pub- 
licly mentioned  by  the  more  candid  and  reasonable 
people,  who  seem  heartily  tired  with  the  great  clam- 
ors for  liberty."  And  he  added  in  the  same  letter  : 
"  I  hope  the  time  is  not  far  off  when  these  matters 
will  be  settled  upon  a  firm  and  permanent  founda- 
tion ;  but  however  that  may  be,  I  am  confident  the 
behavior  of  the  Church  people,  considered  as  a  body, 
has  been  such  as  has  done  her  honor,  and  will  be  re- 
membered many  years  in  this  country  with  approba- 
tion." 

An  uneasy  state  of  public  feeling  continued,  though 
appearances  indicated  that  the  colonies  had  been 
brought  into  subjection  and  would  not  attempt  im- 
mediately any  armed  resistance  to  the  British  govern- 
ment. Lord  North  was  prime  minister  at  the  time, 
and  had  popular  tumults  at  home  to  look  after,  as 
well  as  dissensions  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic.  He 
believed  in  the  omnipotence  of  the  king  and  Parlia- 
ment, and  failed  to  see  that  coercion,  if  successful  at 
first,  might  end  in  uniting  the  colonies  in  a  steady 
and  unyielding  defense  of  their  civil  rights. 

The  missionary  at  Westchester  in  January,  1771, 
reported  the  condition  of  his  charge  to  be  much  the 
same  as  at  the  date  of  his  last  letter.  It  was  difficult 
to  draw  the  attention  of  the  people  to  the  subject  of 
religion  or  to  persuade  them  that  it  was  of  any  real 
importance.  The  political  animosities  and  disturb- 
ances occupied  their  thoughts,  and  they  seemed  to  be 
more  anxious  about  the  future  of  the  colonies  than 
about  the  interests  of  their  souls  and  the  advance- 
ment of  the  Church.  He  endeavored  to  perform  his 
duty,  hoping  for  better  results  from  his  labors,  and 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  27 

according  to  the  abstracts  of  the  Society,  the  number 
of  his  baptisms  in  1774  was  forty-nine  and  of  admis- 
sions to  the  holy  communion  three. 

New  York  was  the  most  quiet  and  loyal  of  all  the 
colonies,  —  at  least,  it  had  more  friends  of  the  Brit- 
ish government  in  the  beginning  than  any  which  fa- 
vored the  proceedings  of  the  Continental  Congress. 
Her  Assembly  declined  to  take  into  consideration  the 
acts  of  that  body  at  its  first  meeting  in  Philadel- 
phia, September,  1774,  and  refused  to  choose  dele- 
gates to  the  second  Congress,  which  was  to  convene 
in  the  same  city  the  following  May.  The  policy  of 
the  province  was  conservative  ;  and  Seabury,  from 
the  impulses  of  his  nature  and  the  convictions  of  his 
conscience,  took  the  side  of  the  crown  and  resolutely 
defended  its  measures,  and  used  his  influence  in 
Westchester  County  to  quiet  the  people  and  prevent 
them  from  joining  the  Sons  of  Liberty.  He  was 
one  of  a  number  of  persons  who  assembled  at  White 
Plains  in  April,  1775,  and  his  name  is  the  third 
on  the  list  of  three  hundred  and  twelve  signatures 
affixed  to  an  emphatic  protest  which  the  meeting 
adopted  as  follows  :  "  We,  the  subscribers,  freeholders, 
and  inhabitants  of  the  county  of  Westchester,  having 
assembled  at  the  White  Plains  in  consequence  of  cer- 
tain advertisements,  do  now  declare  that  we  met  here 
to  declare  our  honest  abhorrence  of  all  unlawful  Con- 
gresses and  committees,  and  that  we  are  determined, 
at  the  hazard  of  our  lives  and  properties,  to  support 
the  King  and  Constitution  ;  and  that  we  acknowledge 
no  representatives  but  the  General  Assembly,  to 
whose  wisdom  and  integrity  we  submit  the  guardian- 
ship of  our  rights,  liberties,  and  privileges." 


28  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

The  protest  and  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting 
were  published  in  "  Kivington's  Gazette/'  a  newspaper 
printed  in  the  city  of  New  York,  which  warmly  es- 
poused the  royal  cause,  and  had  a  great  influence  on 
the  public  mind.  Rivington  was  an  Englishman  by 
birth,  who  had  an  extensive  foreign  correspondence 
and  a  large  acquaintance  in  Europe  and  America,  and 
he  published,  as  he  claimed,  what  was  conformable  to 
his  ideas  of  true  liberty ;  but  he  became  obnoxious 
to  the  patriots  and  was  denounced,  and  finally  "  his 
press  was  destroyed  by  a  mob  from  Connecticut,  who 
carried  off  a  part  of  his  types,  converted  them  into 
Whig  bullets,  and  compelled  him  to  suspend  the  pub- 
lication of  his  paper."1 

Prior  to  this,  the  colonial  interests  had  been  dis- 
cussed in  two  pamphlets  printed  without  the  name 
of  the  author  or  publisher,  and  one  of  them,  entitled 
"  Free  Thoughts  on  the  Proceedings  of  the  Conti- 
nental Congress,"  was  signed  "  A.  W.  Farmer,"2  and 
attributed  at  the  time  and  since  to  Isaac  Wilkins, 
then  an  influential  member  of  the  loyal  Provincial 
Assembly  of  New  York,  and  an  intimate  friend  of 
the  rector  of  the  church  in  Westchester.  He  was  a 
fearless  leader  on  the  ministerial  side  in  that  body, 
and  when  it  was  proposed  to  appoint  delegates  to 
the  second  Continental  Congress,  he  made  a  speech 
against  the  proposition  which  was  greatly  admired 
by  his  friends  for  its  eloquence,  clearness,  and  preci- 
sion. A  bitter  feeling  was  excited  towards  the  un- 
known author  of  these  pamphlets,  which  were  exten- 
sively and  gratuitously  circulated  among  the  people 

1  Sabine's  Loyalists  of  the  American  Revolution,  vol.  ii.,  p.  216. 

2  A  Westchester  farmer. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  29 

of  New  York  and  other  provinces.  Vengeance  was 
denounced  upon  him,  and  failing  to  find  him,  copies  of 
the  pamphlets  were  gathered  and  burnt,  and  in  some 
instances  they  were  tarred,  feathered,  and  nailed  to 
the  whipping-post,  as  an  indication  of  the  treatment 
which  their  author  would  receive  if  he  were  detected. 
A  month  had  scarcely  passed  away  before  an  anon- 
ymous answer  to  the  "Farmer"  appeared,  written 
with  prudence  and  skill,  and  vindicating  the  measures 
of  the  Congress  from  the  calumnies  and  misrepre- 
sentations of  their  enemies.  Almost  simultaneously 
with  this  answer  was  issued  another  pamphlet  entitled 
66  An  Examination  into  the  Conduct  of  the  Delegates 
at  their  Grand  Convention,"  and  addressed  to  the 
merchants  of  New  York;  and  the  " Farmer,"  who 
wrote  it,  announced  in  an  Appendix  that  he  should 
be  pleased  to  defend  his  former  publication  and  this 
in  the  same  reply,  and  he  would  therefore  wait  ten 
days  for  his  antagonist's  remarks,  which  he  supposed 
would  be  ample  time  for  so  accomplished  a  writer. 
The  date  of  its  publication  —  Christmas  Eve,  1774 
—  shows  that  he  was  ready  with  his  reply  at  the  ap- 
pointed moment,  and  it  came  from  the  press  of  Riv- 
ington,  and  excited  anew  the  curiosity  of  the  public 
to  discover  the  authorship  of  the  anonymous  pam- 
phlets. The  controversy  thickened,  and  a  rejoinder 
on  the  side  of  the  colonies  was  eagerly  anticipated, 
and  it  soon  appeared ;  and  to  the  surprise  of  some 
and  the  delight  of  others,  this  too  was  issued  from 
the  notorious  press  of  James  Rivington.  The  credit 
of  thus  defending  the  colonies  was  given  in  the  public 
estimation  to  such  men  as  John  Jay,  of  Westchester 
County,  and  his  father-in-law,  William  Livingston; 


30  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

but  neither  of  these  gentlemen  held  the  polemic  pen 
in  the  dispute  with  the  "Farmer."  It  was  Alexander 
Hamilton,  so  celebrated  in  American  history,  but  at 
that  time  a  gifted  youth,  not  yet  nineteen  years  old, 
born,  like  Isaac  Wilkins,  in  the  West  Indies,  and  just 
completing  a  course  of  academical  instruction  at 
King's  College  under  the  presidency  of  that  ardent 
loyalist,  Dr.  Myles  Cooper. 

But  who  was  the  spirited  writer  that  signed  him- 
self "  A.  W.  Farmer  "  ?  Seabury,  at  an  earlier  day, 
had  entered  into  a  compact  with  his  clerical  friends, 
Dr.  Chandler,  of  New  Jersey,  and  Dr.  Inglis,  rector  of 
Trinity  Church,  New  York,  to  watch  and  confute  all 
publications  in  pamphlets  or  newspapers  that  threat- 
ened mischief  to  the  Church  of  England  and  the 
British  government  in  America.  Out  of  this  com- 
pact undoubtedly  sprung  "  Free  Thoughts  on  the  Pro- 
ceedings of  the  Congress  at  Philadelphia,"  which  was 
from  his  pen,  as  were  the  other  publications  that  im- 
mediately followed  on  the  same  side  of  the  question. 
His  object,  as  stated  by  himself,  was  "  to  point  out, 
in  a  way  accommodated  to  the  comprehension  of  the 
farmers  and  landowners,  the  destructive  influence 
which  the  measures  of  the  Congress,  if  acted  upon, 
would  have  on  them  and  the  laboring  part  of  the 
community,"  and  he  endeavored  to  persuade  the  New 
York  Assembly  that  "if  they  acceded  to  them,  as 
other  assemblies  had  done,  they  would  betray  the 
rights  and  liberties  of  their  Constitution,  set  up  a  new 
sovereign  power  in  the  province,  and  plunge  it  into 
all  the  horrors  of  rebellion  and  civil  war." l 

The  struggle  for  independence  had  actually  begun, 

1  Shea's  Life  and' Epoch  of  Hamilton,  p.  299. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  31 

and  the  battle  of  Lexington,  on  the  19th  of  April, 
1775,  thrilled  through  the  land,  and  the  people  in 
different  places  were  preparing  for  united  resistance 
to  the  king's  troops.  The  suspicion  which  had  fallen 
upon  Seabury  as  the  author  of  the  obnoxious  publica- 
tions grew  in  strength,  and  his  known  intimacy  with 
leading  loyalists  brought  him  under  the  surveillance 
of  his  enemies,  and  a  body  of  troops,  stationed  at 
Rye,  a  neighboring  town,  was  sent  to  arrest  him  at 
his  residence,  together  with  Isaac  Wilkins,  then  a 
member  of  the  Provincial  Assembly  from  Westches- 
ter.  They  both  escaped,  having  been  advised  of  the 
attempt  upon  their  personal  liberty,  and  kept  them- 
selves for  a  time  in  concealment.1  Wilkins  fled  from 
his  home  and  embarked  for  England,  issuing  to  his 
countrymen  at  the  moment  of  his  departure,  May  3, 
1775,  an  address  in  which,  among  other  things,  he 
said :  "  I  leave  America,  and  every  endearing  con- 
nection, because  I  will  not  raise  my  hand  against  my 
sovereign,  nor  will  I  draw  my  sword  against  my  coun- 
try ;  when  I  can  conscientiously  draw  it  in  her  favor, 
my  life  shall  be  cheerfully  devoted  to  her  service." 
His  wife  and  children  were  left  behind.  The  follow- 
ing letter  from  Seabury,  dated  the  30th  of  the  same 
month,  is  a  brief  but  graphic  description  of  his  own 
condition  and  of  the  feeling  in  the  vicinity  of  New 
York :  — 

1  "  In  the  old  Wilkins  mansion  on  Castle  Hill  Neck,  Westchester,  is 
still  shown  the  place  where  Drs.  Cooper,  Chandler,  and  Seabury  man- 
aged to  secrete  themselves  for  some  time,  notwithstanding  the  most 
minute  and  persevering  search  was  made  for  them  ;  so  ingeniously  con- 
trived was  the  place  of  their  concealment  in  and  about  the  old-fashioned 
chimney.  Food  was  conveyed  to  them  through  a  trap-door  in  the 
floor."  Bolton's  History  of  the  Church  in  Westchester  County,  p.  86, 
ed.  1855. 


32  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

MY  EVER  DEAR  WILKINS, — I  hope  you  are  safe  in  Lon- 
don; may  every  blessing  attend  you.  Mrs.  Wilkins  was 
well  last  evening.  Isabella  has  had  a  rash,  but  is  better. 
Everything  here  quiet.  Reported  that  two  thousand  men 
are  ready  in  Connecticut  for  any  operation  for  which  they 
may  be  wanted  in  this  province.  The  Asia  is  arrived  —  re- 
ported that  she  has  demanded  a  supply  of  provisions  for  Bos- 
ton and  it  is  agreed  that  they  shall  be  furnished.  The  as- 
sociations went  on  very  heavily  at  W.  C. ;  very  few  signed. 
The  Provincial  Congress  have  agreed  to  raise  money  upon 
the  province,  as  the  representatives  of  the  people.  Mr.  L. 
Morris  has  published  his  remarks  upon  the  Protest,  etc.,  — 
poor  me  —  you  are  safe  —  I  think  I  am  too.  If  I  knew  any- 
thing worth  writing,  I  would  write  it.  I  think  the  present 
scene  will  not  last  long.  Drs.  Cooper  and  Chandler  sailed 
last  week.  Tell  Dr.  Cooper  I  received  his  letter,  and  I  will 
write  to  him.  When  I  can  collect  anything  worthy  your 
notice  you  shall  have  it.  God  bless  you,  says  your  ever 
affectionate  SEABURY. 

As  often  happens  in  perilous  political  revolutions, 
families  became  divided  on  the  question  between 
Great  Britain  and  her  colonies,  parents  being  arrayed 
against  their  children,  and  children  against  their  par- 
ents. Wilkins  married  a  sister  of  Lewis  Morris,  a 
signer  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  and  of 
Gouverneur  Morris,  a  distinguished  patriot  also,  but 
the  mother  espoused  tbe  royal  cause,  and  remained 
within  the  British  lines  during  the  continuance  of 
hostilities.  Her  correspondence  at  this  period  with 
her  sons  excited  suspicion  and  occasioned  them  some 
difficulty,  notwithstanding  their  labors  and  sacrifices 
in  behalf  of  the  colonies.1 

1  Loyalists  of  the  American  Revolution,  vol.  ii.,  p.  433. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  33 


CHAPTER  m. 

LETTER  TO  THE  SECRETARY;  FIRMNESS  OF  ALLEGIANCE;  ARREST 
AND  IMPRISONMENT  ;  MEMORIAL  TO  THE  GENERAL  ASSEMBLY  OF 
CONNECTICUT;  RELEASE  AND  RETURN  TO  HIS  FAMILY;  FRESH 
TROUBLES  AND  DECLARATION  OF  INDEPENDENCE  ;  CLOSE  OF  HIS 

CHURCH    AND    ACCOUNT    OF    HIS    PERSECUTIONS. 

A.  D.  1775-1776. 

THE  same  day  on  which  Seabury  wrote  to  his 
friend  Wilkins  he  addressed  a  letter  to  the  secretary 
of  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel,  and 
expressed  his  fears  about  being  able  to  perform  his 
duties  in  his  parish.  "We  are  here,"  he  said,  "in  a 
very  alarming  situation.  Dr.  Cooper 1  and  Dr.  Chand- 
ler have  been  obliged  to  quit  this  community,  and 
sailed  for  England  last  week.  I  have  been  obliged 
to  retire  a  few  days  from  the  threatened  vengeance 
of  the  New  England  people  who  lately  broke  into  this 
province.  But  I  hope  I  shall  be  able  to  keep  my 

1  The  Rev.  Dr.  Myles  Cooper,  President  of  King's  College,  was  threat- 
ened with  personal  violence  by  a  mob  which  went  to  his  residence  to 
seize  him;  but  the  collegians  had  no  sympathy  with  the  attempt,  and 
Hamilton,  one  of  them,  spoke  to  the  crowd  from  the  steps  of  the  porch 
and  remonstrated  against  such  disgraceful  conduct.  It  has  been  said 
that  at  first  Dr.  Cooper  supposed  that  he  was  inciting  the  turbulent  peo- 
ple, and  cried  out  from  an  upper  window:  "  Don't  listen  to  him,  gentle- 
men; he  is  crazy."  While  Hamilton  detained  the  crowd  with  his  address, 
the  president  escaped  by  the  rear  of  the  building  to  the  river,  and  was 
rowed  to  the  Asia,  — a  British  vessel  of  war,  riding  at  anchor  in  the 
harbor.  Vide  Shea's  Life  and  Epoch  of  Hamilton,  p.  354. 
3 


34  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

station.  The  charge  against  the  clergy  is  a  very  ex- 
traordinary one,  —  that  they  have,  in  conjunction  with 
the  Society  and  the  British  ministry,  laid  a  plan  for 
enslaving  America.  I  do  not  believe  that  those  peo- 
ple who  raised  this  calumny  believe  one  syllable  of 
it,  but  they  intend  it  as  an  engine  to  turn  the  popu- 
lar fury  upon  the  Church,  which,  should  the  violent 
schemes  of  some  of  our  Eastern  neighbors  succeed, 
will  probably  fall  a  sacrifice  to  the  persecuting  spirit 
of  independency." 

The  influence  of  New  England,  especially  of  Massa- 
chusetts, and  its  defensive  measures  was  extending, 
and  some  men,  who  at  first  were  lukewarm  and  in- 
clined only  to  plans  for  reconciliation,  began  to  assume 
a  bolder  front,  and  to  say  that  the  dispute  with  Great 
Britain  must  end  in  the  separation  of  the  colonies, 
and  the  acknowledgment  of  their  independence.  The 
course  of  Seabury  as  a  citizen  and  a  minister  of  the 
Church  was  dignified  and  determined.  If  others  wa- 
vered or  changed,  he  was  firm,  and,  like  his  clerical 
brethren,  felt  it  to  be  his  duty  to  pray  for  the  king 
and  his  government,  in  obedience  to  the  oath  which 
he  had  taken  at  his  ordination. 

It  is  true,  his  language  in  his  political  pamphlets 
was  more  in  the  style  of  a  violent  partisan  than  of  a 
discreet  and  godly  clergyman ;  but  he  was  writing  in 
the  disguise  of  a  farmer,  and  addressed  himself  to  the 
plain  yeomanry  of  the  land  in  a  way  which  would  be 
sure  to  arrest  their  attention  and  work  upon  their 
honest  convictions.  Speaking  in  his  first  pamphlet  of 
the  recommendation  to  appoint  committees  in  the  sev- 
eral colonies  to  inspect  the  conduct  of  the  inhabitants 
and  see  whether  they  violated  the  agreement  of  the 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  35 

"grand  Continental  Congress/'  he  said:  "Will  you  be 
instrumental  in  bringing  the  most  abject  slavery  on 
yourselves?  Will  you  choose  such  committees?  Will 
you  submit  to  them,  should  they  be  chosen  by  the 
weak,  foolish,  turbulent  part  of  the  country  people  ? 
Do  as  you  please  ;  but  by  Him  that  made  me,  I  will 
not !  No,  if  I  must  be  enslaved,  let  it  be  to  a  king  at 
least,  and  not  by  a  parcel  of  upstart,  lawless  commit- 
tee-men. If  I  must  be  devoured,  let  it  be  by  the 
jaws  of  a  lion,  and  not  gnawed  to  death  by  rats  and 


vermin."  1 


This  was  the  strong  language  which  the  disturb- 
ances of  the  times  evoked,  and  the  bitterness  of  the 
controversy  between  the  crown  and  the  people  seemed 
to  justify  its  use.  The  worst  treatment  fell  upon  the 
clergy  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  though  no 
greater  opponents  to  the  war  for  independence  than 
many  of  their  sectarian  brethren,  they  were  marked 
for  closer  restraint  and  subjected  to  sharper  trials  and 
persecutions.  The  fears  which  Seabury  had  expressed 
in  his  letter  to  the  secretary  were  soon  realized.  He 
had  been  serving,  as  best  he  could,  his  two  dimin- 
ished congregations,  and  working  in  another  way  to 
obtain  a  partial  support  for  his  family,  when  an  armed 
force  from  Connecticut  invaded  the  territory  of  New 
York,  seized  him  at  his  school-room,  and  carried  him 
to  New  Haven.  The  particulars  of  his  arrest  and  the 
recital  of  his  wrongs  and  of  the  cruelties  inflicted 
upon  him  are  so  well  stated  in  his  petition  to  the 
General  Assembly,  asking  for  relief,  that  no  apol- 
ogy is  necessary  for  printing  it  here  in  full.  It  is 
headed, — 

1  Free  Thoughts,  etc.,  p.  18. 


36  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

To  the  General  Assembly  of  the  Governor  and  Company  of 
the  Colony  of  Connecticut,  now  sitting  in  New  Haven,  in 
said  Colony,  by  special  Order  of  his  Honor,  the  Governor. 

The  memorial  of  Samuel  Seabury,  Clerk,  A.  M.,  Rector  of 
the  Parish  of  West  Chester,  in  the  County  of  West  Chester 
and  Province  of  New  York,  humbly  showeth  :  — 

That  on  Wednesday,  the  22d  day  of  November  last,  your 
memorialist  was  seized  at  a  house  in  West  Chester  where  he 
taught  a  grammar  school,  by  a  company  of  armed  men,  to 
the  number,  as  he  supposes,  of  about  forty  ;  that  after  being 
carried  to  his  own  house  and  being  allowed  time  to  send  for 
his  horse,  he  was  forced  away  on  the  road  to  Kingsbridge, 
but  soon  meeting  another  company  of  armed  men,  they 
joined  and  proceeded  to  East  Chester. 

That  a  person  styled  Captain  Lothrop  ordered  your  memo- 
rialist to  be  seized.  That  after  the  two  companies  joined, 
the  command  appeared  to  your  memorialist  to  be  in  Captain 
Isaac  Sears,  and  the  whole  number  of  men  to  be  about  one 
hundred.  That  from  East  Chester  your  memorialist,  in  com- 
pany with  Jonathan  Fowler,  Esq.,  of  East  Chester,  and  Nathl. 
Underbill,  Esq.,  of  West  Chester,  was  sent  under  a  guard 
of  about  twenty  armed  men  to  Horseneck,  and  on  the  Mon- 
day following  was  brought  to  this  town  and  carried  in  tri- 
umph through  a  great  part  of  it,  accompanied  by  a  large 
number  of  men  on  horseback  and  in  carriages,  chiefly  armed. 
That  the  whole  company  arranged  themselves  before  the 
house  of  Captain  Sears.  That  after  firing  two  cannon  and 
huzzaing,  your  memorialist  was  sent  under  a  guard  of  four 
or  five  men  to  the  house  of  Mrs.  Lyman,  where  he  has  ever 
since  been  kept  under  guard.  That  during  this  time  your 
memorialist  hath  been  prevented  from  enjoying  a  free  inter- 
course with  his  friends ;  forbidden  to  visit  some  of  them, 
though  in  company  with  his  guard ;  prohibited  from  reading 
prayers  in  the  church,  and  in  performing  any  part  of  divine 
service,  though  invited  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Hubbard  so  to  do ; 
interdicted  the  use  of  pen,  ink,  and  paper,  except  for  the  pur- 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  37 

pose  of  writing  to  his  family,  and  then  it  was  required  that 
his  letters  should  be  examined  and  licensed  before  they  were 
sent  off ;  though  on  Friday  last,  Captain  Sears  condescended 
that  your  memorialist  should  be  indulged  in  writing  a  memo- 
rial to  this  Hon.  Assembly.  That  your  memorialist  hath  re- 
ceived but  one  letter  from  his  family  since  he  has  been  under 
confinement,  and  that  was  delivered  to  him  open,  though 
brought  by  the  post. 

Your  memorialist  begs  leave  further  to  represent,  that  he 
hath  heard  a  verbal  account  that  one  of  his  daughters  was 
abused  and  insulted  by  some  of  the  people  when  at  his  house 
on  the  22d  of  November.  That  a  bayonet  was  thrust  through 
her  cap,  and  her  cap  thereby  tore  from  [her]  head.  That  the 
handkerchief  about  her  neck  was  pierced  by  a  bayonet,  both 
before  and  behind.  That  a  quilt  in  the  frame  on  which  the 
daughters  of  your  memorialist  were  at  work  was  so  cut  and 
pierced  with  bayonets  as  to  be  rendered  useless.  That  while 
your  memorialist  was  waiting  for  his  horse,  on  the  said  22d 
day  of  November,  the  people  obliged  the  wife  of  your  memo- 
rialist to  open  his  desk,  where  they  examined  his  papers,  part 
of  the  time  in  presence  of  your  memorialist.  That  he  had  in 
a  drawer  in  the  desk  three  or  four  dollars  and  a  few  pieces 
of  small  silver.  That  he  hath  heard  that  only  an  English 
shilling  and  three  or  four  coppers  were  found  in  the  drawers 
after  he  was  brought  away.  That  your  memorialist  thinks 
this  not  improbable,  as  Jonathan  Fowler,  Esq.,  informed  him 
that  a  new  beaver  hat,  a  silver  mounted  horsewhip,  and  two 
silver  spoons  were  carried  off  from  his  house  on  said  day. 
Mr.  Meloy,  also,  of  this  town,  informed  your  memorialist, 
that  he,  the  said  Meloy,  had  been  accused  by  some  people  of 
pointing  a  bayonet  at  the  breast  of  a  daughter  of  your  memo- 
rialist, desiring  your  memorialist  to  exculpate  him  from  the 
charge,  to  which  request  your  memorialist  replied  that  he  was 
not  at  his  house  but  at  his  school-house,  when  the  affair  was 
said  to  have  happened ;  but  that  a  daughter  of  your  memori- 
alist met  him  as  he  was  brought  from  the  school-house,  and 
told  him  that  one  of  the  men  had  pushed  a  bayonet  against 


38  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

her  breast  and  otherwise  insulted  her  ;  and  your  memorialist 
remembers  that  when  he  left  his  house  in  the  morning  his 
daughter  had  a  cap  on,  but  when  she  met  him  near  the 
school-house,  she  had  none  on,  and  her  hair  was  hanging 
over  her  shoulders. 

Your  memorialist,  also,  begs  leave  further  to  represent 
that  after  he  had  been  eight  or  ten  days  at  New  Haven,  he 
was  carried  by  Mr.  Jonathan  Mix,  to  whose  care  he  was  com- 
mitted, to  the  house  of  Mr.  Beers,  innkeeper,  in  said  town, 
where  were  Captain  Sears,  Captain  Lothrop,  Mr.  Brown, 
and  some  others,  whose  names  he  did  not  know,  or  does  not 
recollect.  That  several  questions  were  asked  him,  to  some 
of  which  he  gave  the  most  explicit  answers,  but  perceiving 
some  insidious  design  against  him  by  some  of  the  questions, 
he  refused  to  answer  any  more.  That  Captain  Sears  then 
observed  to  him,  if  he  understood  him  right,  that  they  did 
not  intend  to  release  him,  nor  to  make  such  a  compromise 
with  him  as  had  been  made  with  Judge  Fowler  and  Mr. 
Underbill,  but  to  keep  him  a  prisoner  till  the  unhappy  dis- 
putes between  Great  Britain  and  America  were  settled.  That 
whatever  your  memorialist  might  think,  what  they  had  done 
they  would  take  upon  themselves  and  support.  That  your 
memorialist  then  asked  an  explicit  declaration  of  the  charges 
against  him,  and  was  told  that  the  charges  against  him 
were :  — 

That  he,  your  memorialist,  had  entered  into  a  combination 
with  six  or  seven  others  to  seize  Captain  Sears  as  he  was 
passing  through  the  county  of  West  Chester,  and  convey 
him  on  board  a  man-of-war. 

That  your  memorialist  had  signed  a  protest  at  the  White 
Plains,  in  the  county  of  West  Chester,  against  the  proceed- 
ings of  the  Continental  Congress. 

That  your  memorialist  had  neglected  to  open  his  church 
on  the  day  of  the  Continental  Fast. 

And  that  he  had  written  pamphlets  and  newspapers 
against  the  liberties  of  America. 

To  the  first  and  last  of  these  charges  your  memorialist 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  39 

pleads  not  guilty,  and  will  be  ready  to  vindicate  his  inno- 
cence, as  soon  as  he  shall  be  restored  to  his  liberty  in  that 
province  to  which  only  he  conceives  himself  to  be  amenable. 
He  considers  it  a  high  infringement  of  the  liberty  for  which 
the  virtuous  sons  of  America  are  now  nobly  struggling,  to 
be  carried  by  force  out  of  one  colony  into  another,  for  the 
sake  either  of  trial  or  imprisonment.  Must  he  be  judged  by 
the  laws  of  Connecticut,  to  which  as  an  inhabitant  of  New 
York  he  owed  no  obedience  ?  or  by  the  laws  of  that  colony 
in  which  he  has  been  near  twenty  years  a  resident  ?  or,  if 
the  regulations  of  Congress  be  attended  to,  must  he  be 
dragged  from  the  committee  of  his  own  county,  and  from 
the  Congress  of  his  own  province,  cut  off  from  the  inter- 
course of  his  friends,  deprived  of  the  benefit  of  those  evi- 
dences which  may  be  necessary  for  the  vindication  of  his  in- 
nocence, and  judged  by  strangers  to  him,  to  his  character, 
and  to  the  circumstances  of  his  general  conduct  in  life  ? 

One  great  grievance  justly  complained  of  by  the  people 
of  America,  and  which  they  are  now  struggling  against,  is 
the  Act  of  Parliament  directing  persons  to  be  carried  from 
America  to  England  for  ,a  trial.  And  your  memorialist  is 
confident  that  the  supreme  legislative  authority  in  this  col- 
ony will  not  permit  him  to  be  treated  in  a  manner  so  de- 
structive to  that  liberty  for  which  they  are  now  contending. 
If  your  memorialist  is  to  be  dealt  with  according  to  law,  he 
conceives  that  the  laws  of  Connecticut,  as  well  as  of  New 
York,  forbid  the  imprisonment  of  his  person  any  otherwise 
than  according  to  law.  If  he  is  to  be  judged  according 
to  the  regulations  of  the  Congress,  they  have  ordained  the 
Provincial  Congress  of  New  York,  or  the  committee  of  the 
county  of  West  Chester,  to  be  his  judges.  Neither  the  laws 
of  either  colony  nor  the  regulations  of  the  Congress  give 
any  countenance  to  the  mode  of  treatment  which  he  has  met 
with.  But  considered  in  either  light,  he  conceives  it  must 
appear  unjust,  cruel,  arbitrary,  and  tyrannical. 

With  regard  to  the  second  charge,  viz.  :  That  your  memo- 
rialist signed  a  protest  against  the  proceedings  of  the  Con- 


40  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

gress,  he  begs  leave  to  state  the  fact  as  it  really  is.  The 
General  Assembly  of  the  province  of  New  York,  in  their 
sessions  last  winter,  determined  to  send  a  petition  to  the 
king,  a  memorial,  to  the  House  of  Lords,  and  a  remon- 
strance to  the  House  of  Commons,  upon  the  subject  of 
American  grievances;  and  the  members  of  the  house,  at 
least  many  of  them,  as  your  memorialist  was  informed,  rec- 
ommended it  to  their  constituents  to  be  quiet  till  the  issue 
of  those  applications  should  be  known.  Sometime  in  the 
beginning  of  April,  as  your  memorialist  thinks,  the  people 
were  invited  to  meet  at  the  White  Plains  to  choose  dele- 
gates for  a  Provincial  Congress.  Many  people  there  assem- 
bled were  averse  from  the  measure.  They,  however,  gave  no 
other  opposition  to  the  choice  of  delegates  than  signing  a 
protest.  This  protest  your  memorialist  signed  in  company 
with  two  members  of  the  assembly,  and  above  three  hun- 
dred other  people.  Your  memorialist  had  not  a  thought  of 
acting  against  the  liberties  of  America.  He  did  not  con- 
ceive it  to  be  a  crime  to  support  the  measures  of  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  people,  measures  which  he  then  hoped,  and 
expected,  would  have  had  a  good  effect  by  inducing  a  change 
of  conduct  in  regard  to  America.  More  than  eight  months 
have  now  passed  since  your  memorialist  signed  the  protest. 
If  his  crime  was  of  so  atrocious  a  kind,  why  was  he  suffered 
to  remain  so  long  unpunished  ?  or  why  should  he  be  now 
singled  out  from  more  than  three  hundred,  to  endure  the  un- 
exampled punishment  of  captivity  and  unlimited  confine- 
ment ? 

The  other  crime  alleged  against  your  memorialist  is,  that 
he  neglected  to  open  his  church  on  the  day  of  the  Conti- 
nental Fast.  To  this  he  begs  leave  to  answer :  That  he  had 
no  notice  of  the  day  appointed  but  from  common  report. 
That  he  received  no  order  relative  to  said  day  either  from 
any  Congress  or  committee.  That  he  cannot  think  himself 
guilty  of  neglecting  or  disobeying  an  order  of  Congress, 
which  order  was  never  signified  to  him  in  any  way.  That 
a  complaint  was  exhibited  against  your  memorialist  to  the 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  41 

Provincial  Congress  of  New  York,  by  Captain  Sears,  soon 
after  the  neglect  with  which  he  is  charged,  and  that  after 
the  matter  was  fully  debated,  the  complaint  was  dismissed. 
That  he  conceives  it  to  be  cruel,  abitrary,  and  in  the  high- 
est degree  unjust,  after  his  supposed  offense  has  been  ex- 
amined before  the  proper  tribunal,  to  be  dragged  like  a 
felon  seventy  miles  from  home,  and  again  impeached  of  the 
same  crime.  At  this  rate  of  proceeding,  should  he  be  ac- 
quitted at  New  Haven,  he  may  be  forced  seventy  miles  far- 
ther, and  so  on  without  end. 

Further  your  memorialist  begs  leave  to  represent :  That 
he  has  a  wife  and  six  children,  to  whom  he  owes,  both 
from  duty  and  affection,  protection,  support,  and  instruction. 
That  his  family  in  a  great  measure  depend,  under  the  provi- 
dence of  God,  upon  his  daily  care  for  their  daily  bread.  That 
there  are  several  families  at  West  Chester  who  depend  on 
his  advice  as  a  physician,  to  which  profession  he  was  bred. 
That  as  a  clergyman  he  has  the  care  of  the  towns  of  East 
and  West  Chester.  That  there  is  not  now  a  clergyman  of 
any  denomination  nearer  than  nine  miles  from  the  place  of 
his  residence,  and  but  one  within  that  distance  without 
crossing  the  Sound ;  so  that  in  his  absence  there  is-  none  to 
officiate  to  the  people  in  any  religious  service,  to  visit  the 
sick,  or  bury  the  dead. 

Your  memorialist  also  begs  leave  to  observe :  That  in  or- 
der to  discharge  some  debts  which  the  necessity  of  his  affairs 
formerly  obliged  him  to  contract,  he,  about  a  year  ago, 
opened  a  grammar  school,  and  succeeded  so  far  as  to  make  it 
worth  one  hundred  pounds,  York  money,  for  the  year  past. 
That  he  was  in  a  fair  way  of  satisfying  his  creditors  and 
freeing  himself  from  a  heavy  incumbrance.  That  he  had  five 
young  gentlemen  from  the  Island  of  Jamaica,  one  from  Mont- 
real, four  children  of  gentlemen  now  in  England,  committed 
to  his  care,  among  others  from  New  York  and  the  country. 
That  he  apprehends  his  school  to  be  broken  up,  and  his 
Scholars  dispersed,  probably  some  of  them  placed  at  other 
schools,  and  that  it  may  be  difficult,  if  not  impracticable, 


42  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

again  to  recover  them.  That  if  there  should  be  no  other  im- 
pediment, yet  if  the  people  of  West  Chester  are  to  be  liable 
to  such  treatment  as  your  memorialist  hath  lately  endured, 
no  person  will  be  willing  to  trust  his  children  there.  That 
in  this  case,  your  memorialist  must  lie  entirely  at  the  mercy 
of  his  creditors  to  secure  him  from  a  jail,  or  must  part  with 
everything  he  has  to  satisfy  their  just  demands. 

Your  memorialist,  thinking  it  his  duty  to  use  all  lawful 
and  honorable  means  to  free  himself  from  his  present  con- 
finement, mentioned  his  case  to  the  judges  of  the  superior 
court,  lately  sitting  in  this  town.  Those  honorable  gentle- 
men thought  it  a  case  not  proper  for  them  to  interfere  in  ; 
he  has,  therefore,  no  remedy,  but  in  the  interposition  of  the 
Honorable  House  of  Assembly. 

To  them  he  looks  for  relief  from  the  heavy  hand  of  op- 
pression and  tyranny.  He  hopes  and  expects  that  they  will 
dismiss  him  from  his  confinement,  and  grant  him  their  pro- 
tection, while  he  passes  peaceably  through  the  colony.  He 
is  indeed  accused  of  breaking  the  rules  of  the  Continental 
Congress.  He  thinks  he  can  give  a  good  account  of  his  con- 
duct, such  as  would  satisfy  reasonable  and  candid  men.  He 
is  certain  that  nothing  can  be  laid  to  his  charge  so  repugnant 
to  the  regulations  of  the  Congress,  as  the  conduct  of  those 
people  who  in  an  arbitrary  and  hostile  manner  forced  him 
from  his  house,  and  have  kept  him  now  four  weeks  a  prisoner 
without  any  means  or  prospect  of  relief.  He  has  a  higher 
opinion  of  the  candor,  justice,  and  equity  of  the  Honorable 
House  of  Assembly,  and  shall  they  incline  to  inquire  more 
minutely  into  the  affair,  he  would  be  glad  to  appear  at  the 
bar  of  their  house,  and  answer  for  himself ;  or  to  be  per- 
mitted to  have  counsel  to  answer  for  him ;  or,  in  such  way 
as  they  in  their  wisdom  shall  think  best,  to  grant  him  relief. 
And  your  memorialist,  as  in  duty  bound,  shall  ever  pray. 

SAMUEL  SEABURY. 

DATED  IN  NEW  HAVEN  THE  20TH  DAY  OF  DECEMBER,  1775. 

• 

A  letter  from  the  President  of  the  Provincial  Con- 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  43 

gress  of  New  York  to  the  Governor  of  Connecticut, 
demanding  his  "  immediate  discharge/'  and  dated  the 
12th  of  December,  was  read  before  the  Lower  House 
of  the  Assembly,  and  six  of  its  members,  with  Dr. 
Wm.  Samuel  Johnson,  of  the  Upper  House,  were 
appointed  to  take  it  into  consideration  and'  report 
how  it  should  be  answered.  The  memorial  of  Mr. 
Seabury  was  subsequently  referred  to  the  same  com- 
mittee, and,  after  due  deliberation,  they  recommended 
as  expedient  and  proper  that  all  parties  concerned  in 
the  matter  of  it  "  be  heard  by  themselves  or  counsel 
before  both  Houses  of  Assembly,"  and  the  question 
being  put  in  the  Lower  House  on  accepting  the  re- 
port, it  was  decided  in  the  negative. 

The  memorialist,  however,  was  speedily  released 
from  his  confinement,  and  he  returned  to  his  family 
after  Christmas,  arriving  in  Westchester  on  the  2d 
of  January.  His  absence  had  occasioned  much  anx- 
iety and  perplexity,  and  his  private  affairs  were  in 
a  distracted  condition.  He  seems  to  have  had  lit- 
tle hope  that  he  could  retain  his  place  without  fur- 
ther molestation ;  but  he  determined  to  perform  his 
ministerial  duties  at  any  sacrifice  until  he  was  driven 
away.  His  papers  were  in  a  confused  state,  so  that 
he  could  make  no  formal  report  to  the  Society,  but 
he  wrote  to  the  secretary  eleven  days  after  his  re- 
turn to  Westchester,  and  briefly  mentioned,  as  it  was 
his  duty  to  do,  the  hardships  which  had  befallen  him 
and  the  personal  inconveniencies  to  which  he  had 
been  subjected. 

"  Since  my  last  letter,"  said  he,  "  I  have  been 
seized  by  a  company  of  disaffected  people  in  arms 
from  Connecticut,  in  number  about  one  hundred,  and 


44  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

carried  to  New  Haven.  This  happened  on  the  22d 
of  November,  and  I  was  kept  under  a  military  guard 
till  the  23d  of  December.  The  particulars  of  this 
affair  I  will  send  you  when  I  find  a  safe  opportunity. 
On  the  2d  of  this  month  I  returned  to  my  family. 
How  long  I  shall  be  able  to  continue  here  is  very 
uncertain ;  but  I  am  determined  to  stay  as  long  as  I 
am  permitted  to  discharge  the  duties  of  my  mission, 
whatever  personal  inconvenience  it  may  subject  me 
to.  My  private  affairs  have  suffered  much  on  this 
occasion.  I  was  compelled  to  bear  my  expenses,  and 
that  has  not  been  less  than  <£10  sterling.  My  papers 
were  all  examined,  and  are  thrown  into  such  confusion 
that  I  can  find  none  of  my  memoranda  relating  to  my 
mission  or  correspondence  with  the  Society." 

The  critical  state  of  the  times  made  him  exceed- 
ingly cautious,  and  he  did  not  write  again  to  the  So- 
ciety until  the  close  of  the  year.  The  quiet  of  a  few 
weeks  after  his  return  to  his  mission  was  succeeded 
by  fresh  insults,  and  a  perpetual  watch  was  kept  on 
his  movements  to  find  new  causes  for  treating  him 
with  severity.  His  ecclesiastical  character,  though 
venerated  by  many  on  the  side  of  the  colonies,  did 
not  save  him  from  persecution,  and  he  was  filled  with 
gloomy  forebodings  for  himself  and  his  brethren. 
"  God's  providence,"  said  he,  "  will,  I  hope,  protect 
his  Church  and  clergy  in  this  country,  the  disorder 
and  confusion  of  which  are  beyond  description.  But 
it  is  his  property  to  bring  order  out  of  confusion, 
good  out  of  evil;  and  may  his  will  be  done." 

The  Declaration  of  Independence  on  the  4th  of 
July,  1776,  left  no  longer  any  room  for  the  Provin- 
cial Assembly  of  New  York  to  hesitate  about  with- 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  45 

drawing  from  the  support  of  the  crown,  and  falling 
in  with  the  measures  of  the  General  Congress.  The 
popular  voice  was  setting  in  the  strong  current  of 
united  resistance  to  the  invasion  of  the  British  troops, 
and  steps  were  taken  to  maintain,  at  any  cost,  the 
war  which  had  been  for  some  time  in  progress.  An 
edict  was  proclaimed  by  the  Provincial  Assembly  for- 
bidding persons  to  contribute  in  any  way  to  the  sup- 
port or  comfort  of  the  king  and  his  forces  under 
penalty  of  death.  This  added  to  the  terror  of  the 
times,  and  compelled  Seabury  to  discontinue  his  pub- 
lic services,  —  at  least  it  was  construed  as  prohibiting 
him  from  the  use  of  the  full  Liturgy  of  the  Church  of 
England.  His  conscience  would  not  allow  him  to  mu- 
tilate it;  and  he  therefore  absented  himself  from  the 
sanctuary,  and  directed  the  sexton  to  notify  the  peo- 
ple who  might  come  to  worship  of  his  determination 
not  to  officiate  until  he  was  at  liberty  to  pray  for  the 
king.  His  own  account  of  his  trials  and  sufferings  at 
this  period,  contained  in  the  letter  already  referred 
to,  dated  December  29,  1776,  is  so  complete,  that  at 
the  risk  of  repeating  some  things,  it  is  introduced  to 
close  this  chapter. 

Since  my  last  letter  I  have  undergone  more  uneasiness 
than  I  can  describe  ;  more,  I  believe,  than  I  could  well  sup- 
port again. 

When  the  present  unnatural  rebellion  was  first  beginning, 
I  foresaw  evidently  what  was  coming  on  the  country,  and  I 
exerted  myself  to  stem  the  torrent  of  popular  clamor,  to 
recall  people  to  the  use  of  their  reason,  and  to  retain  them 
in  their  loyalty  and  allegiance.  Several  pamphlets  ap- 
peared in  favor  of  government,  among  others,  some  written 
under  the  character  of  a  Farmer,  which  gave  great  offense 
to  the  Sons  of  Liberty,  as  the  rebels  then  styled  themselves. 


46  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

These  were  attributed  to  me,  and  were  the  principal  reason 
of  my  being  carried  into  Connecticut  the  last  year.  If  I 
would  have  disavowed  these  publications  I  should  have  been 
set  at  liberty  in  a  few  days  ;  but  as  I  refused  to  declare 
whether  I  were,  or  were  not,  the  author,  they  kept  me  till 
they  sent  to  New  York  and  New  London,  and  wherever  they 
could  hear  of  a  journeyman  printer  who  had  wrought  for 
Mr.  Rivington  at  the  time  when  those  pamphlets  were 
published,  and  had  them  examined  ;  but,  finding  no  suffi- 
cient proof,  upon  my  putting  in  a  memorial  to  the  General 
Assembly  at  Connecticut,  the  gang  who  took  me  prisoner 
thought  proper  to  withdraw  their  guard  and  let  me  return. 
I  continued  tolerably  quiet  at  home  for  a  few  weeks,  till 
after  the  king's  troops  evacuated  Boston,  when,  the  rebel 
army  passing  from  thence  to  New  York,  bodies  of  them,  con- 
sisting of  twenty  or  thirty  men,  would,  every  day  or  two, 
sometimes  two  or  three  times  a  day,  come  through  West 
Chester,  though  five  miles  out  of  their  way,  and  never  failed 
to  stop  at  my  house,  I  believe  only  for  the  malicious  pleas- 
ure of  insulting  me  by  reviling  the  king,  the  Parliament, 
Lord  North,  the  Church,  the  bishops,  the  clergy,  and  the 
Society,  and,  above  all,  that  vilest  of  all  miscreants,  A.  W. 
Farmer.  One  would  give  one  hundred  dollars  to  know  who 
he  was,  that  he  might  plunge  his  bayonet  into  his  heart; 
another  would  crawl  fifty  miles  to  see  him  roasted ;  but, 
happily  for  the  farmer,  it  was  not  in  the  power  of  any  per- 
son in  America  to  expose  him.  This  continued  about  a 
month.  Matters  then  became  pretty  quiet,  till  they  got 
intelligence  that  General  Howe  was  coming  to  New  York. 
Independency  was  then  declared  by  the  grand  Congress  at 
Philadelphia;  and  the  petty  Congress  at  New  York  pub- 
lished an  edict,  making  it  death  to  aid,  abet,  support,  assist, 
or  comfort  the  king,  or  any  of  his  forces,  servants,  or  friends. 
Till  this  time  I  had  kept  the  church  open.  About  fifty 
armed  men  were  now  sent  into  my  neighborhood. 

I  was  now  in  a  critical  situation.     If   I  prayed  for  the 
king  the  least  I  could  expect  was  to  be  sent  into  New  Eng- 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABUKY.  47 

land  ;  probably  something  worse,  as  no  clergyman  on  the 
continent  was  so  obnoxious  to  them.  If  I  went  to  church 
and  omitted  praying  for  the  king,  it  would  not  only  be  a 
breach  of  my  duty,  but  in  some  degree  countenancing  their 
rebellion,  and  supporting  that  independency  which  they  had 
declared.  As  the  least  culpable  course,  I  determined  not  to 
go  to  church,  and  ordered  the  sexton,  on  Sunday  morning, 
to  tell  any  person  who  should  inquire,  that  till  I  could  pray 
for  the  king,  and  do  my  duty  according  to  the  rubric  and 
canons,  there  would  be  neither  prayers  nor  sermon.  About 
half  a  dozen  of  my  parishioners  and  a  dozen  rebel  soldiers 
came  to  the  church.  The  rest  of  the  people,  in  a  general 
way,  declared  that  they  would  not  go  to  church  till  their 
minister  was  at  liberty  to  pray  for  the  king. 

Soon  after  this,  the  British  fleet  and  army  arrived  at 
Staten  Island.  The  rebels  then  became  very  alert  in  ap- 
prehending the  friends  of  government.  Many  had  retired 
to  West  Chester  from  New  York.  These  were  first  sought 
after;  some  escaped;  many  were  seized.  My  situation  be- 
came daily  more  critical,  as  they  began  to  take  up  the  inhab- 
itants of  the  country.  At  length  two  ships  of  war  came  into 
the  Sound  and  took  their  station  within  sight  of  my  house. 
Immediately  the  whole  coast  was  guarded  that  no  one  might 
go  to  them.  Within  a  few  days  the  troops  landed  on  Long 
Island,  and  the  rebels  were  defeated.  A  body  of  them  then 
took  post  at  the  heights  near  Kingsbridge,  in  my  parish,  and 
began  to  throw  up  works.  Another  body  fixed  themselves 
within  two  miles  of  my  house. 

For  some  time  before  I  had  kept  a  good  deal  out  of  sight, 
lodging  abroad,  and  never  being  at  home  for  more  than  an 
hour  or  two  at  a  time,  and  having  a  number  of  people  whom 
I  could  depend  upon  engaged,  who  punctually  informed  me 
of  every  circumstance  that  was  necessary  for  me  to  know. 


48  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 


CHAPTER  IV. 

ESCAPE  TO  LONG  ISLAND,  AND  DESECRATION  OF  HIS  CHURCH  ; 
LETTER  TO  THE  SOCIETY,  AND  DEATH  OF  MISSIONARIES;  RESI- 
DENCE IN  NEW  YORK  CITY,  AND  MISSIONARY  AT  STATEN  ISLAND  J 
APPOINTED  CHAPLAIN,  AND  BURNING  OF  TRINITY  CHURCH  ;  SUF- 
FERINGS AND  LOSSES  OF  THE  CLERGY. 

A.  D.  1776-1780. 

AFTER  the  British  troops  had  effected  a  landing 
on  Long  Island  and  defeated  the  American  forces, 
Seabury  contrived  to  escape  from  Westchester,  and 
sought  protection  within  the  lines  of  the  king's  army. 
He  could  not  have  prevented  the  lawlessness  and 
ravages  had  he  remained ;  but  it  was  a  sad  day  for 
his  church  and  family  when  he  withdrew.  A  com- 
pany of  cavalry,  having  been  quartered  at  his  resi- 
dence, consumed  all  the  produce  of  his  glebe,  and  the 
colonial  troops,  after  burning  the  pews  in  his  church 
and  injuring  it  in  other  ways,  converted  it  into  a 
hospital.  The  school,  which  had  been  moderately 
prosperous  under  his  charge,  was  completely  broken 
up,  and  he  and  his  family  were  deprived  of  all  visible 
means  of  support.  Great  as  his  privations  and  dis- 
tresses were,  he  did  not  abate  an  atom  of  his  loyalty 
to  the  home  government ;  but  continued  to  uphold  its 
designs  and  to  hope  for  deliverance  and  the  return 
of  peace  and  better  days. 

When  the  royal  army  passed  over  from  Long  Isl- 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  49 

and  into  Westchester  County,  his  familiarity  with  the 
roads  and  rivers  of  the  region  enabled  him  to  furnish 
maps  and  plans  which  were  of  essential  service  to 
the  commanding  general.  He  knew  the  sentiments 
of  the  bulk  of  his  people,  and  believed  that  he  was 
right  in  doing  everything  to  encourage  their  loyalty 
and  to  deter  them  from  embarking  in  a  revolution 
that  was  surrounded  by  so  many  terrors. 

"  I  must  observe/'  wrote  he  at  this  time,  "  that 
but  few  of  my  congregation  are  engaged  in  the  re- 
bellion. The  New  England  rebels  used  frequently  to 
observe,  as  an  argument  against  me,  that  the  nearer 
they  came  to  West  Chester  the  fewer  friends  they 
found  to  American  liberty,  —  that  is,  to  rebellion ; 
and,  in  justice  to  the  rebels  of  East  and  West  Ches- 
ter, 1  must  say,  that  none  of  them  ever  offered 
me  any  insult  or  attempted  to  do  me  any  injury 
that  I  know  of.  It  must  give  the  Society  great  sat- 
isfaction to  know  that  all  their  missionaries  have 
conducted  themselves  with  great  propriety,  and,  on 
many  occasions,  with  a  firmness  and  steadiness  that 
have  done  them  honor.  This  may,  indeed,  be  said  of 
all  the  clergy  on  this  side  the  Delaware,  and,  I  am 
persuaded,  of  many  on  the  other.  But  the  conduct 
of  the  Philadelphia  clergy  has  been  the  very  reverse. 
They  not  only  rushed  headlong  into  the  rebellion 
themselves,  but  perverted  the  judgment  and  soured 
the  tempers  and  inflamed  the  passions  of  the  people 
by  sermons  and  orations,  both  from  the  pulpit  and 
the  press.  Their  behavior  hath  been  of  great  disad- 
vantage to  the  loyal  clergy." 

It  was  impossible  for  Seabury  to  resume  his  clerical 
duties  or  be  safe  in  Westchester  unless  under  military 


50  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

protection ;  and,  accordingly,  when  the  king's  troops 
departed  from  the  neighborhood,  he  gathered  what 
little  he  could  carry  and  retired  with  his  family  to 
New  York.  His  retirement  was  not  a  day  too  soon, 
for  scarcely  had  he  reached  the  city  when  niany 
persons  in  his  parish  and  its  vicinity  were  seized  and 
carried  away,  and  the  whole  region  for  thirty  miles 
around  was  pillaged  and  laid  waste  by  the  marches 
and  depredations,  sometimes  of  one  army  and  some- 
times of  the  other. 

His  next  letter  to  the  secretary  of  the  Society  was 
dated  at  New  York,  March  29, 1777,  and  opened  with 
an  apology  for  not  giving  in  the  previous  one  infor- 
mation of  the  death  of  the  neighboring  missionary  at 
Eye,  the  Kev.  Mr.  Avery.  He  detailed  the  sad  cir- 
cumstances as  he  had  received  them,  and  placed  the 
cause  of  his  death,  whether  justly  or  not  is  uncertain, 
among  the  barbarities  of  civil  war. 

When  the  king's  army  was  about  to  leave  the  county  of 
West  Chester,  the  latter  end  of  October  last,  our  brigade,  un- 
der the  command  of  General  Agnew,  pushed  forward  about 
two  miles  beyond  Rye,  in  hopes  of  bringing  a  large  detach- 
ment of  the  rebel  army,  which  lay  there,  to  an  engagement ; 
but  not  being  able  to  come  up  with  them,  they  returned  on 
a  Sunday  afternoon  to  join  the  royal  army  near  the  White 
Plains.  That  evening  the  rebels  returned  to  Rye,  and  as 
Mr.  Avery  and  many  of  the  loyalists  had  shown  particular 
marks  of  joy  when  the  king's  troops  came  there,  they  be- 
came very  obnoxious  to  the  rebels,  who  showed  their  resent- 
ment by  plundering  their  houses,  driving  off  their  cattle, 
taking  away  their  grain,  and  imprisoning  some  of  them. 
Among  the  rest,  Mr.  Avery  was  a  sufferer,  and  lost  his  cat- 
tle, horses,  etc.  On  Tuesday  morning  he  desired  a  maid- 
servant to  give  the  children  their  breakfast,  and  went  out. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  51 

Some  time  after,  he  was  found,  some  say,  under  a  fence  or 
in  an  out-house,  with  his  throat  cut,  either  dead  or  just  ex- 
piring. Many  people  are  very  confident  that  he  was  mur- 
dered by  the  rebels  ;  others  suppose  that  his  late  repeated 
losses  and  disappointments,  the  insults  and  threats  of  the 
rebels,  and  the  absence  of  his  best  friends,  drove  him  into  a 
state  of  desperation,  too  severe  for  his  strength  of  mind. 
He  had,  last  spring,  a  stroke  of  the  palsy,  which  deprived 
him  of  the  use  of  one  hand,  and  affected  his  reason  a  good 
deal.  He  also,  about  the  same  time,  lost  his  wife,  —  a  pru- 
dent and  cheerful  woman,  which  affected  him  so  much,  that 
when  I  attended  at  her  funeral  I  did  not  think  it  right  to 
leave  him  suddenly,  but  tarried  with  him  several  days  till 
he  was  more  composed.  I  visited  him  again  a  fortnight 
after  and  found  him  much  better,  and  would  have  repeated 
my  visits ;  but  the  times  became  too  critical  to  admit  of  it. 
He  has  left  five  or  six  helpless  orphans,  I  fear,  in  great  dis- 
tress ;  indeed,  I  know  not  what  is  to  become  of  them.  I 
have  only  heard  that  the  rebels  had  humanity  enough  to 
permit  them  to  be  carried  to  Mr.  Avery's  friends  at  Norwalk, 
in  Connecticut. 

In  the  same  letter  he  reported  the  death  of  another 
missionary,  the  Rev.  Luke  Babcock,  who  for  six  years 
had  been  stationed  at  the  manor  of  Philipsburg  (now 
Yonkers),  and,  like  himself,  was  a  sincere  and  active 
loyalist.  From  his  allegiance  to  the  king  sprung  the 
calamities  which  hurried  him  to  the  grave.  "  The 
latter  end  of  October,"  wrote  Seabury,  "he  was 
seized  by  the  rebels  at  his  house  and  carried  off  to 
the  Provincial  Congress  at  Fishkill.  His  papers  and 
sermons  were  also  seized  and  examined,  but  as  noth- 
ing appeared  on  which  they  could  ground  any  pre- 
tense for  detaining  him,  he  was  asked  whether  he 
supposed  himself  bound  by  his  oath  of  allegiance  to 
the  king :  upon  his  answering  in  the  affirmative,  he 


52  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

was  deemed  an  enemy  to  the  liberties  of  America, 
and  ordered  to  be  kept  in  custody.  About  the  mid- 
dle of  February  he  was  taken  sick,  and  as  his  confine- 
ment had  produced  no  change  in  his  sentiments,  he 
was  dismissed  with  a  written  order  to  remove  within 
ten  days  within  the  lines  of  the  king's  army,  being 
adjudged  a  person  too  dangerous  to  be  permitted  to 
continue  where  his  influence  might  be  exerted  in 
favor  of  legal  government.  He  got  home  with  diffi- 
culty in  a  raging  fever,  and  delirious.  In  this  state 
he  continued  about  a  week  (the  greatest  part  of  the 
time  delirious),  and  then  died,  extremely  regretted. 
Indeed,  I  knew  not  a  more  excellent  man,  and  I  fear 
his  loss,  particularly  in  that  mission,  will  scarcely  be 
made  up." 

As  for  himself  and  his  people,  it  has  already  been 
seen  that  the  bitter  fruits  of  civil  war  were  reaped  by 
them  in  abundance.  His  description  of  the  treatment 
of  women  and  children  is  too  painful  to  be  repeated. 
This  treatment  must  be  ascribed  to  that  spirit  of  law- 
lessness which  unhappily  in  times  of  great  excitement 
and  disorder  is  somewhat  beyond  the  control  of  mag- 
istrates and  military  commanders.  New  York  was 
their  place  of  refuge,  where  they  found  protection,  if 
not  support.  "  Many  families  of  my  parishioners," 
said  he,  "  are  now  in  this  town,  who  used  to  live 
decently,  suffering  for  common  necessaries.  I  daily 
meet  them,  and  it  is  melancholy  to  observe  the  dejec- 
tion strongly  marked  on  their  faces,  which  seem  to 
implore  that  assistance  which  I  am  unable  to  give. 
To  pity  and  pray  for  them  is  all  I  can  do.  I  shall 
say  nothing  more  of  my  own  situation  at  present, 
than  that  I  have  hitherto  supported  myself  and 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  53 

family  with  decency,  and  will  not  distrust  the  good- 
ness of  God  which  has  hitherto  preserved  me,  nor 
render  myself  unworthy  of  it  by  repining  and  discon- 
tent." 

On  the  12th  of  November,  1777,  he  wrote  again 
to  the  secretary  and  mentioned  that  about  a  month 
before,  he  had  visited  Westchester,  and  thought  of 
spending  the  winter  there,  but  was  compelled  to  re- 
linquish his  purpose  and  return  to  New  York.  He 
requested  that  he  might  be  allowed  to  remove  to 
Staten  Island,  if  he  found  it  safer  than  Westchester, 
and  the  Society,  "  sensible  of  his  great  worth,"  read- 
ily consented  to  his  request  and  promised  a  contin- 
uance of  his  salary  of  £50  per  annum  until  the 
existing  disturbances  should  cease.  In  December  of 
the  same  year  he  officiated  on  Staten  Island,  admin- 
istered the  sacrament  of  baptism,  and  preached  to  a 
devout  congregation  of  nearly  three  hundred  people ; 
but  his  removal  thither  was  felt  to  be  unsafe,  and  he 
continued  to  reside  in  New  York,  and  applied  him- 
self, for  the  support  of  his  family,  to  the  practice  of 
medicine,  as  he  had  done  to  a  limited  extent  in  West- 
Chester.' 

His  eye,  however,  was  still  on  his  work  as  a  minis- 
ter of  the  gospel,  and  he  watched  every  opportunity 
to  resume  his  duties  and  serve  the  Church.  It  was 
some  compensation  for  being  deprived  of  access  to 
his  parish  that  Dr.  Seabury,1  on  the  14th  of  Feb- 
ruary, 1778,  was  appointed,  by  Sir  Henry  Clinton, 
chaplain  to  the  king's  American  regiment,  raised  and 
commanded  by  Col.  Edmund  Fanning,  and  while  act- 

1  The  degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity  was  conferred  upon  him  by  the 
University  of  Oxford,  December  15,  1777. 


54  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

ing  in  that  capacity,  he  preached  a  sermon  in  camp 
from  the  text,  "Fear  God,  honor  the  king,"  which 
was  printed  by  request  of  Gov.  William  Tryon.  His 
belief  in  the  success  of  the  British  arms  was  strong, 
but  he  admitted  the  f  ormidableness  of  the  opposition, 
as  appears  from  the  following  letter  to  the  secretary, 
dated 

NEW  YORK,  November  22,  1778. 

REVEREND  SIR,  —  I  am  obliged  still  to  continue  at  New 
York,  it  being  impracticable  for  me  to  return  to  West  Ches- 
ter or  reside  with  safety  on  Staten  Island  ;  and  though  I  am 
strong  in  hope  that  the  commotions  in  this  country  will  soon 
subside,  yet  I  confess  the  present  appearances  seem  to  indi- 
cate a  fixed  resolution  in  the  Congress  to  support  their  inde- 
pendency, as  long  as  they  possibly  can.  I  am,  however,  con- 
fident it  could  not  be  supported  against  the  vigorous  efforts 
of  Great  Britain  for  one  campaign,  as  the  resources  of  this 
country  must  be  nearly  exhausted. 

The  unhappy  war  went  on  four  years  longer,  and 
although  the  chances  for  American  independence 
often  trembled  in  the  balance,  there  were  no  signs 
of  a  disposition  to  lay  down  arms  and  submit  to  the 
demands  of  the  British  ministry.  Shut  up  in  New 
York,  Dr.  Seabury  knew  but  little  of  what  was  trans- 
piring outside,  and  having  no  intelligence  to  commu- 
nicate concerning  any  missionary  labors,  he  wrote 
no  letters  to  the  Society,  and  he  could  send  none  to 
his  brethren  over  the  lines.  It  was  only  by  reports, 
not  always  to  be  relied  upon,  that  any  information 
could  be  obtained  of  the  condition  of  the  clergy  and 
Church  of  England  in  the  other  colonies.  Dr.  Inglis 
sent  home  a  detailed  account  of  the  calamities  which 
befell  both  as  far  as  he  had  been  able  to  learn  them, 
and  described  the  great  conflagration  that  destroyed 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  55 

one  fourth  part  of  the  city  of  New  York,  about  a 
thousand  houses,  including  Trinity  Church,  its  rectory 
and  charity  school,  large  and  expensive  buildings, 
together  with  two  hundred  dwellings  that  stood  on 
church  ground.  The  origin  of  the  conflagration  was 
attributed  to  evil-minded  patriots  who,  upon  the  oc- 
cupancy of  the  city  by  the  king's  forces,  secreted 
themselves  in  the  houses ;  and  on  Saturday,  the  21st 
of  September,  1776,  a  little  after  midnight,  when  the 
weather  was  dry  and  the  wind  blowing  fresh,  they 
kindled  fires  in  several  places  at  the  same  time,  and 
but  for  the  providence  of  God,  and  the  vigorous  ef- 
forts of  the  officers  and  men  belonging  to  the  army 
and  navy,  the  whole  city  would  have  been  destroyed. 
Trinity  Church  was  not  rebuilt  until  1788 ;  but 
the  corporation  had  two  chapels,  St.  Paul's  and  St. 
George's,  which  had  escaped  destruction,  and  these 
were  opened  again  for  regular  services,  which  had 
been  suspended  for  nearly  three  months,  while  Gen- 
eral Washington  was  holding  the  city.  The  death  of 
Dr.  Auchmuty,  the  rector,  which  was  thought  to  have 
been  hastened  by  the  persecutions  and  hardships  he 
underwent  from  the  patriots,  occurred  about  this 
time,1  and  Dr.  Inglis,  the  senior  assistant,  was  elected 
his  successor  March  20,  1777.  He  was  duly  admitted 
and  instituted  into  his  office  according  to  the  forms 
and  custom  of  those  days,  and  as  there  was  no  edifice 
for  him  to  enter,  he  was  conducted  to  Trinity  Church 
and  the  ceremony  made  valid  "  by  placing  his  hand 
on  the  wall  of  the  said  church,  the  same  being  then 


a  ruin."2 


1  March  4,  1777. 

2  Berrien's  History  of  Trinity  Church,  p.  152. 


56  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

The  friendship  between  Dr.  Inglis  and  Dr.  Seabury 
was  cemented  by  a  participation  in  common  trials, 
and  their  political  transgressions  were  so  much  alike 
that  they  were  equally  hated  and  persecuted.  Both 
had  used  their  pens  vigorously  in  defense  of  the 
measures  and  authority  of  the  British  government, 
and  in  opposition  to  publications  which  they  regarded 
as  virulent,  artful,  and  pernicious.  Dr.  Inglis  wrote 
an  answer  to  the  famous  pamphlet  of  Thomas  Paine, 
entitled  "  Common  Sense,"  which  advocated  an  inde- 
pendent republic,  and  was  perhaps  more  widely  cir- 
culated than  any  political  publication  in  America  up 
to  that  time.  The  first  edition  of  the  answer  was 
seized  and  committed  to  the  flames,  but  a  copy  was 
sent  to  Philadelphia  and  another  edition  issued,  which 
put  the  author  in  so  great  peril  that  he  attributed  his 
deliverance  and  safety  to  the  hand  of  an  overruling 
Providence. 

It  has  been  seen  how  Dr.  Seabury  wrote  against  the 
schemes  of  the  Continental  Congress  and  brought  on 
himself  the  hostility  and  persecution  of  the  promoters 
of  American  independence.  His  loyalty  was  founded 
on  the  deepest  convictions  of  duty,  and  he  adhered 
to  it  at  the  expense  of  his  peace  and  comfort.  What 
he  did  to  eke  out  his  living  by  the  practice  of  med- 
icine in  New  York  while  the  city  was  in  possession 
of  the  king's  troops  was  a  matter  of  necessity,  and 
enabled  him  to  support  his  family  with  that  degree 
of  decency  of  which  he  had  spoken  in  one  of  his 
letters  to  the  venerable  Society.  But  nowhere  in 
America  during  those  troublous  times  was  there  any 
luxury  to  be  enjoyed  by  the  clergy  and  members  of 
the  Church  of  England.  The  clergy  especially  were 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  57 

thrown  into  great  embarrassment  and  distress,  and 
the  sympathy  of  their  brethren  at  home  was  so  much 
excited  that  a  subscription  was  set  on  foot  and  money 
contributed  and  sent  over  to  be  distributed  among 
a  certain  number  for  the  relief  of  their  immediate 
necessities. 

"  At  the  breaking  out  of  the  war,"  says  Hawkins, 
"  the  Society  was  contributing  towards  the  mainte- 
nance of  nearly  eighty  missionaries,  at  an  average 
little  exceeding  £40  a  year  for  each.  But  in  pro- 
portion as  the  violence  of  party  feeling  increased,  the 
clergy,  against  whom  it  was  more  especially  directed, 
and  who,  with  hardly  an  exception,  remained  un- 
shaken in  their  allegiance  to  the  king,  were  either 
driven  from  their  parishes  by  actual  force,  or  induced 
for  the  safety  of  their  families  to  retire." 

New  York  was  the  stronghold  to  which  those  who 
had  no  other  refuge  fled  for  security,  and  in  that  ex- 
pensive city  many  of  them  tarried,  hoping  that  the 
gloomy  clouds  of  war  would  soon  disappear  and  al- 
low them  to  return  to  their  families  and  their  flocks, 
and  resume  the  duties  of  their  sacred  calling.  Their 
hearts  sickened  at  the  prospect  as  months  and  years 
passed  on  without  bringing  the  deliverance  hoped 
for,  or  any  mitigation  of  their  sufferings  and  sorrows. 
The  Eev.  Thomas  Barton,  a  missionary  of  the  Soci- 
ety in  Delaware,  was  forced  to  surrender  his  loyalty 
or  find  protection  within  the  British  lines ;  and  in  a 
letter  to  the  secretary  dated  New  York,  January  8, 
1779,  he  said  :  "  The  clergy  of  America,  the  mission- 
aries in  particular,  have  suffered  beyond  example,  and 
indeed  beyond  the  records  of  any  history  in  this  day 

1  Missions  of  the  Church  of  England,  p.  343. 


58  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

of  trial.  Most  of  them  have  lost  their  all,  many  of 
them  are  now  in  a  state  of  melancholy  pilgrimage 
and  poverty  ;  and  some  of  them  have  lately  (from 
grief  and  despondency,  it  is  said)  paid  the  last  debt 

of   nature We  may  exclaim,   Quis  furor,  O 

cives !  What  have  we  done  to  deserve  this  treat- 
ment from  our  former  friends  and  fellow-citizens? 
We  have  not  intermeddled  with  any  matters  incon- 
sistent with  our  callings  and  functions.  We  have 
studied  to  be  quiet  and  to  give  no  offense  to  the 
present  rulers.  We  have  obeyed  the  laws  and  gov- 
ernment now  in  being,  as  far  as  our  consciences  and 
prior  obligations  would  permit.  We  know  no  crime 
that  can  be  alleged  against  us,  except  an  honest 
avowal  of  our  principles  can  be  deemed  such,  and  for 
these  have  we  suffered  a  persecution  as  cruel  as  the 
bed  of  Procrustes."  l 

It  was  in  midsummer,  1779,  that  a  fleet  of  vessels 
of  war  under  Sir  George  Collier,  and  transports  with 
troops  under  General  Tryon,  left  New  York,  and, 
arriving  off  New  Haven,  soon  took  possession  of  the 
town,  and  scenes  of  bloodshed,  plunder,  and  destruc- 
tion followed.  The  same  expedition,  two  days  later, 
July  7th,  sailed  away  from  New  Haven,  and  the  next 
morning  the  troops  disembarked  at  Fairfield,  plun- 
dered the  houses  of  the  inhabitants  and  then  burnt 
them,  together  with  the  two  churches  and  all  the 
principal  buildings  of  the  place.  The  Rev.  John  Say  re, 
who  had  been  the  missionary  of  the  Society  at  Fair- 
field  for  five  years,  endeavored  to  use  his  influence 
with  General  Tryon  and  prevent  an  indiscriminate 
conflagration ;  but  his  efforts  wer.e  unsuccessful,  and 

1  Historical  Collections,  Delaware,  pp.  131,  132. 


OF    SAMUEL   SEABURY.  59 

with  his  church  and  dwelling  in  ashes,  his  library, 
furniture,  and  other  valuables  entirely  destroyed,  and 
no  food  and  no  means  of  support  for  his  wife  and 
eight  children,  he  was  obliged  to  avail  himself  of  the 
military  protection  offered,  and  retire  with  them  to 
New  York,  where  he  obtained  subsistence  in  part  by 
the  practice  of  medicine. 

The  end  of  this  cruel  expedition  had  not  yet  been 
accomplished  ;  for,  after  crossing  the  Sound  to  Hunt- 
ington  Bay,  and  remaining  over  Sunday,  it  returned 
to  Norwalk  on  the  llth  of  July,  and  again  applied 
the  torch  of  the  invader,  burning  a  larger  number  of 
houses,  barns,  and  shops  than  at  Fairfield,  together 
with  the  meeting-house  and  the  Episcopal  church. 
The  Kev.  Jeremiah  Learning,  the  worthy  missionary 
at  this  place,  was  the  victim  of  sufferings  from  both 
friends  and  foes.  Everything  he  possessed,  except 
the  clothes  on  his  back,  was  lost.  "  My  loss  on  that 
fatal  day,"  said  he  in  a  letter  to  the  Society,  dated 
New  York,  the  29th  of  the  same  month,  "was  not 
less  than  £1,200  or  £1,300  sterling.  Although  in 
great  danger,  my  life  has  been  preserved,  and  I  hope 
I  shall  never  forget  the  kind  providence  of  God  in 
that  trying  hour.  In  this  situation  I  was  brought 
by  His  Majesty's  troops  to  this  city,  at  which  I  shall, 
with  the  greatest  pleasure,  obey  the  Society's  com- 
mands." 

These  clergymen,  thus  driven  to  a  place  of  com- 
mon refuge,  must  have  often  conferred  together  and 
interchanged  thoughts  about  the  probable  issue  of 
the  struggle  for  independence.  Every  day  it  was 
prolonged  made  them  more  uneasy;  but  Seabury, 
with  the  practice  of  medicine  and  his  duties  as  chap- 


60  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

lain,  had  better  opportunities  than  his  brethren  of 
rising  above  the  depths  of  despondency.  He  had 
little  or  nothing  to  communicate  to  the  Society,  of 
general  interest,  and  his  correspondence,  like  that  of 
other  missionaries  at  this  time,  was  confined  to  a 
simple  report  of  himself  and  of  the  unchanged  condi- 
tion of  public  affairs. 

"  Think  not,  good  sir,"  said  he  in  one  of  his  letters 
to  the  secretary,  "  that  I  repent  of  my  loyalty  to  my 
king,  or  of  my  attachment  to  the  Church  of  England 
or  to  the  British  government.  Under  the  same  cir- 
cumstances I  would  again  act  as  I  have  done,  even 
were  I  sure  the  consequences  would  be  worse."  Not- 
withstanding the  general  treatment  of  the  clergy  had 
been  unkind  and  often  severe  without  provocation, 
they  were  distressed  at  the  public  calamities,  and 
could  not  but  pity  the  sorrowful  condition  of  their 
countrymen  who  took  the  other  side  in  the  contest, 
and  were  patiently  waiting  for  peace  and  independ- 
ence. It  was  a  terrible  time  for  all.  "  The  judg- 
ments of  God,"  said  Isaac  Brown,  one  of  the  refugee 
clergymen,  "  fall  very  heavy  on  the  inhabitants  of 
this  land  in  general,  and  seem  to  be  yet  increasing 
daily.  Even  the  brute  creation  groans  and  travails 
in  pain ;  for  all  manner  of  cruelties  are  practiced 
upon  the  beasts  of  the  field,  as  well  as  their  own- 
ers, in  this  day  of  common  calamity,  and  no  pros- 
pect of  redress  that  I  can  see,  either  from  heaven  or 
men ;  for  the  inhabitants  have  not  yet  learned  right- 
eousness, and  consequently  remain  very  proper  in- 
struments to  execute  the  divine  vengeance  on  one 
another." 

Such  a  fearful  state  of  things  is  hardly  conceivable 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  61 

by  those  who  have  never  known  from  experience  the 
evils  of  civil  war.  The  generation  has  passed  away 
that  could  tell  the  thrilling  tales  of  the  Revolution, 
and  stir  up  with  painful  memories  the  feelings  of 
children  gathered  around  the  old  domestic  firesides. 


62  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 


CHAPTER  Y. 

CONTINUED  RESISTANCE  OF  THE  COLONIES;  TREACHERY  OF  AR- 
NOLD, AND  HIS  PLOT  TO  DESTROY  THE  AMERICAN  CAUSE;  EXPE- 
DITION AGAINST  NEW  LONDON,  AND  MASSACRE  OF  THE  GARRI- 
SON IN  FORT  GRISWOLD;  SIEGE  OF  YORKTOWN,  AND  SURRENDER 
OF  LORD  CORNWALLIS;  TREATY  OF  PEACE,  AND  INDEPENDENCE 
OF  THE  COLONIES;  LOYALISTS  AND  THEIR  TREATMENT;  THE 

CLERGY   AND    THE    CHURCH. 

A.  D.  1780-1783. 

IT  is  impossible  to  forecast  the  varying  events  and 
fortunes  of  war.  The  strength  of  armies  is  often 
strangely  broken,  and  victory  is  not  always  given  to 
the  side  which  has  the  best  troops  and  the  heaviest 
artillery.  "  The  rebellion,"  wrote  Dr.  Inglis  to  the 
Society,  May  20,  1780,  "  declines  daily,  and  is  near 
its  last  gasp;"  but  there  was  more  inherent  life  in 
it  than  he  was  willing  to  acknowledge,  or  had  any 
means  of  ascertaining.  Earlier  than  this,  Jacob  Du- 
che,  a  clergyman  of  the  Church  of  England,  in  Phil- 
adelphia, who  made  the  first  prayer  in  the  Conti- 
nental Congress  and  read  the  Psalter  for  the  seventh 
day,  so  remarkably  appropriate,  addressed  a  letter  to 
General  Washington,  in  which  he  pictured  in  gloomy 
colors  the  utter  hopelessness  of  resistance,  and  be- 
sought him  to  cease  his  desperate  and  destructive 
efforts.  The  letter  was  sent  to  Congress,  and  the 
author  was  obliged  to  flee  the  country,  and  his  estate 
was  confiscated. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  63 

As  time  went  on,  the  colonies  became  more  firm 
and  determined,  and  submission  to  the  king  and  his 
ministry  was  further  than  ever  from  the  mind  of  the 
congressional  government.  Too  much  had  been  done 
and  too  many  sacrifices  made  to  think  of  taking  any 
backward  steps,  and  the  advantages  gained  now  and 
then  by  the  American  troops  were  full  of  encourage- 
ment, and  enlivened  their  hopes. 

In  the  autumn  of  1780,  the  military  posts  along 
the  Hudson  River  above  New  York,  as  far  as  West 
Point,  presented  a  scene  of  unparalleled  and  surpris- 
ing movements.  The  treachery  of  Benedict  Arnold 
and  his  artfully  contrived  plan  to  make  it  easy  for 
Sir  Henry  Clinton  to  capture  the  fortress  and  army 
under  his  command  were  startling  facts,  developed 
just  in  time  to  save  the  American  cause  and  inspire 
its  promoters  with  new  vigilance  and  energy.  Had 
West  Point  and  the  forces  within  and  around  it  fallen 
into  the  hands  of  the  British  general  through  the 
treason  of  Arnold,  the  hopes  of  the  colonies  would 
have  been  blighted,  and  the  vision  of  their  independ- 
ence, for  years  at  least,  must  have  disappeared.  The 
unfortunate  Major  Andre  —  not  more  beloved  by  his 
friends  than  lamented  by  his  enemies  —  would  have 
indeed  escaped  the  ignominious  death  of  the  gallows, 
and  all  the  region  where  Seabury  had  ministered  and 
was  well  known  would  have  had  a  somewhat  differ- 
ent history  and  been  consecrated  to  other  memories. 

But  Providence  was  in  the  way  of  these  results. 
The  conspiracy  to  surrender  West  Point  was  not  des- 
tined to  succeed  or  to  have  any  place  in  our  Ameri- 
can annals,  except  one  as  dishonorable  to  the  head 
and  heart  of  the  projector  as  to  the  commander  who 


64  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

should  be  willing  to  accept  the  laurels  of  victory 
won  by  such  atrocious  treachery.  Sir  Henry  Clin- 
ton ought  not  to  be  held  responsible  for  the  violation 
of  the  flag  of  truce,  or  for  the  course  imposed  upon 
Major  Andre*,  without  alternative,  when  Arnold  sent 
him  back  to  New  York  by  a  circuitous  route  with  a 
pass  under  a  fictitious  name.  He  refused,  however, 
to  save  his  adjutant-general  at  the  price  of  surrender- 
ing the  traitor,  and  perhaps  he  was  bound  by  honor 
and  every  military  principle  to  protect  an  officer  who 
had  deserted  from  the  enemy  and  openly  espoused 
the  cause  of  the  king.  All  the  bravery  which  Ar- 
nold had  before  shown  and  all  the  service  he  had 
rendered  to  the  American  cause  were  at  once  forgot- 
ten, and  contempt  and  disgust  were  the  only  emo- 
tions excited  by  his  treason.  With  a  folly  equal  to 
his  wickedness,  he  warned  General  Washington  not 
to  execute  the  sentence  of  death  upon  the  victim  of 
the  complot.  "  If  this  warning,"  said  he  in  his  inso- 
lent letter,  "  should  be  disregarded  and  he  suffer,  I 
call  heaven  and  earth  to  witness  that  your  excellency 
will  be  answerable  for  the  torrent  of  blood  that  may 
be  spilt  in  consequence." 

The  threat  thus  uttered  was,  in  a  measure,  exe- 
cuted, when,  a  year  later,  Arnold  was  put  in  com- 
mand of  an  expedition  fitted  out  at  New  York,  — 
the  headquarters  of  Sir  Henry  Clinton  and  the  Brit- 
ish army,  —  and  sent  to  New  London,  Conn.,  four- 
teen miles  below  Norwich,  the  place  of  the  traitor's 
birth  and  the  scene  of  his  boyhood.  The  town,  by 
his  order,  was  burnt,  Whigs  and  Tories  suffering  alike 
from  the  conflagration,  and  the  little  garrison  in  Fort 
Griswold,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  Thames,  which 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  65 

stood  heroically  to  its  guns  and  kept  the  enemy  for  a 
time  at  bay,  was  finally  forced  to  surrender,  and  the 
indiscriminate  massacre  which  followed  forms  one  of 
the  bloodiest  and  most  horrible  chapters  in  the  whole 
history  of  the  war. 

Almost  simultaneously  with  the  movements  of  this 
expedition,  were  commenced  the  investment  and  siege 
of  Yorktown  by  the  combined  French  and  American 
armies  under  the  command  of  General  Washington. 
For  twenty  days  the  siege  was  continued,  and  the  in- 
vestment was  so  complete  and  the  batteries  on  the 
colonial  side  so  strong  that  nothing  was  left  Lord 
Cornwallis,  the  British  commander,  but  to  capitulate, 
and  then  to  surrender  his  whole  force,  consisting  of 
nearly  eight  thousand  men,  with  all  the  munitions 
of  war.  This  happened  on  the  19th  of  October,  and 
virtually  decided  the  struggle  for  independence  in 
favor  of  the  colonies.  The  capture  of  so  large  a  part 
of  the  British  army  in  America  occasioned  great  re- 
joicings throughout  the  land,  and  at  home  it  made 
the  people  more  clamorous  for  the  end  of  a  war 
which  was  destroying  commerce  and  bringing  no 
glory  to  the  realm  of  England.  "  It  is  all  over,"  said 
Lord  North,  with  a  fainting  heart,  when  he  heard  of 
the  catastrophe. 

The  ministry  hesitated  about  attempting  to  raise 
troops  to  replace  the  army  surrendered  by  Lord 
Cornwallis,  and  early  in  1782,  a  motion  was  made  in 
Parliament  that  an  address  be  presented  to  His  Maj- 
esty praying  that  the  war  with  the  colonies  should 
terminate  and  measures  be  taken  to  restore  tran- 
quillity and  effect  a  reconciliation.  An  earnest  and 
animated  debate  was  entered  into  on  both  sides,  but 

5 


C6  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

the  motion  was  finally  lost  by  a  majority  of  only  one 
in  favor  of  the  ministry  and  for  the  prosecution  of 
the  war.  Such  a  vote  was  indicative  of  the  public 
sentiment  of  the  English  nation.  It  w;is  the  signal 
for  an  immediate  dissolution  of  the  cabinet,  and  the 
resignation  of  Lord  North  was  followed  by  a  total 
change  of  ministry  and  measures.  Gleams  of  peace 
began  to  be  seen  in  the  near  future,  and  the  Con- 
gress of  the  colonies  appointed  commissioners  to  ne- 
gotiate a  treaty  whenever  the  temper  of  the  crown 
should  be  ready  for  such  an  event. 

Early  in  May  of  this  year,  Sir  Guy  Carleton  arrived 
at  New  York  to  relieve  General  Clinton  as  command- 
er-in-chief  of  the  British  forces  in  America,  and  the 
pacific  tone  of  his  first  letter  to  Washington  showed, 
if  nothing  more,  a  change  in  the  views  of  Parliament 
respecting  the  principles  on  which  the  war  for  seven 
years  had  been  conducted  and  the  policy  of  its  con- 
tinuance. The  clergy  of  the  Church  of  England  in 
the  city  do  not  appear  to  have  been  at  once  apprised 
of  this  change.  Dr.  Inglis  wrote  to  the  secretary  of 
the  Society  under  date  of  May  6,  1782  :  "  Our  new 
commander-in-chief,  Sir  Guy  Carleton,  is  arrived  and 
indicates  a  disposition  to  act  with  vigor ;  and  this 
with  a  little  judgment  and  common  sense  will  soon 
change  the  face  of  affairs  here." 

He  had  said  before,  in  the  same  letter :  "  Our  pros- 
pects in  Europe  and  America  are  rather  gloomy  at 
present ;  but  they  are  not  such  as  should  make  us 
despond,  nor  do  I  by  any  means  think  our  affairs 
are  irretrievable.  It  may  be  some  satisfaction  to 
you  to  hear  that  the  Church  of  England,  notwith- 
standing the  persecutions  it  suffers,  gains  ground  in 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  67 

some  places,  particularly  in  Connecticut.  This  I  can 
assure  you  of  as  an  indubitable  fact.  The  steady, 
uniform  conduct  of  the  Society's  missionaries  and  of 
a  few  clergymen  who  are  not  in  their  service,  in  that 
province,  their  adherence  to  the  dictates  of  conscience 
by  persevering  in  loyalty  and  preaching  the  gospel 
unadulterated  with  politics,  raised  the  esteem  and 
respect  even  of  their  enemies,  whilst  the  pulpits  of 
dissenters  resounded  with  scarcely  anything  else  than 
the  furious  politics  of  the  times,  which  occasioned  dis- 
gust in  the  more  serious  and  thinking.  The  conse- 
quence is  that  many  serious  dissenters  have  actually 
joined  the  Church  of  England.  The  increase  in  some 
places  has  been  surprisingly  great." 

So  far  as  the  Church  in  New  York  was  concerned, 
there  was  little  to  report.  The  refugee  clergy  con- 
tinued to  keep  up  good  hopes  and  to  encourage  their 
people  with  the  prospect  of  better  days.  It  was  about 
this  time  that  a  room  was  secured  in  the  City  Hall, 
to  accommodate  those  who  could  not  obtain  pews  in 
the  churches,  and  the  refugee  clergy  officiated  in 
turn  to  large  and  respectable  audiences.  It  must 
have  been  in  view  of  the  religious  and  not  of  the 
military  and  political  condition  of  the  colonies  that 
Seabury  wrote  to  the  Society  on  the  24th  of  June, 
1782 :  "  The  situation  of  affairs  in  this  country  has, 
for  the  last  year,  continued  so  much  the  same,  that 
I  have  nothing  new  of  which  to  inform  the  Society. 
Both  West  Chester  and  Staten  Island  remain  in  the 
same  ruined  state,  as  much  exposed  to  the  incursions 
of  the  rebels  as  ever,  though  these  incursions  have 
not  lately  been  so  frequent  as  formerly. 

"  By  what  we  can  learn  of  the  Society's  mission- 


68  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

aries  they  seem  to  be  in  a  more  quiet  state  at  pres- 
ent, and  suffer  no  personal  abuse  unless  perhaps  from 
some  disorderly  individuals." 

This,  however,  was  not  for  them  the  quiet  that 
precedes  the  storm,  but  rather  the  forerunner  of  un- 
expected and  surprising  events.  In  the  beginning  of 
August,  General  Washington  received  a  communica- 
tion from  Sir  Guy  Carle  ton,  informing  him  that  nego- 
tiations for  a  general  peace  had  been  entered  upon 
at  Paris,  and  though  from  that  time  preparations 
for  war  ceased,  and  no  further  acts  of  hostility  were 
committed  by  either  party,  yet  the  American  army 
was  not  disbanded  nor  the  posture  of  defense  relin- 
quished. So  long  as  the  result  of  the  negotiations 
was  in  suspense,  it  was  necessary  to  maintain  the 
same  caution  and  vigilance  as  before. 

It  was  this  intelligence  which  alarmed  the  loyalists 
in  New  York,  especially  the  clergy  of  the  Church  of 
England.  "It  is  impossible,"  wrote  the  Rev.  John 
Sayre,  to  the  Society,  August  14,  1782,  "  for  words 
to  describe  the  universal  consternation  which  was  pro- 
duced here  by  the  communication  of  a  letter  from 
His  Majesty's  Commissioner  to  General  Washington, 
in  consequence  of  directions  from  England  informing 
him  of  the  king's  command  to  his  minister  plenipo- 
tentiary at  Paris,  to  propose  the  independency  of  the 
thirteen  provinces  in  the  first  instance,  instead  of 
making  it  the  subject  of  a  general  treaty.  As  there 
can  be  little  doubt  of  the  acceptance  of  this  proposal, 
it  is  obvious  that  it  must  greatly  affect  the  affairs  of 
the  Church  as  well  as  those  of  the  state."  Others 
expressed  themselves  in  similar  terms,  and  not  only 
looked  to  the  venerable  Society  for  advice  and  in- 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  69 

struction,  but  some  of  them,  utterly  hopeless  of  find- 
ing any  provision  for  their  families  in  this  country, 
began  to  think  of  removing  to  England. 

The  rights  and  the  tranquillity  of  France,  Spain, 
and  Holland  were  involved  in  the  settlement  of  the 
many  questions  between  the  two  great  belligerents, 
and  before  the  fundamental  articles  of  a  definitive 
treaty  were  agreed  upon  and  a  time  for  signing 
fixed,  the  summer  and  autumn  had  passed.  Dr. 
Franklin,  John  Adams,  John  Jay,  and  Henry  Lau- 
rens  were  the  commissioners  to  act  for  the  colonies, 
and  they  resisted  the  attempt  of  the  British  envoys 
to  obtain  compensation  for  the  loyalists  whose  prop- 
erty had  been  confiscated,  and  many  of  whom  had 
been  driven  out  of  the  country.  Franklin  claimed 
that  Congress  had  no  power  in  the  case,  as  the  prop- 
erty of  the  loyalists  had  been  confiscated  by  the 
States,  and  the  remedy,  if  any,  was  to  be  sought 
from  the  States.  The  utmost  which  was  finally  ac- 
complished was  simply  to  get  an  article  inserted  in 
the  treaty  by  which  it  was  made  the  duty  of  Con- 
gress to  recommend  to  the  States  an  indemnification 
of  the  loyalists ;  but  the  recommendation  was  of  no 
force,  and  it  was  declared  at  the  time  that  there  was 
not  the  least  probability  that  the  States  would  be 
governed  by  it  or  offer  any  restitution. 

After  all  the  preliminaries  and  articles  had  been 
settled,  the  treaty  of  peace  was  signed  at  Paris  by 
both  parties  in  due  form  on  the  30th  of  November, 
1782.  It  was  approved  and  ratified  by  Congress, 
and  hailed  with  demonstrations  of  gratitude  and  joy 
by  the  weary  colonies.  An  official  proclamation  that 
peace  had  been  secured  was  made  to  the  American 


70  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

army  on  the  19th  of  April,  1783,  precisely  eight 
years  from  the  day  of  the  memorable  battle  of  Lex- 
ington, when  the  first  blood  of  the  Revolution  was 
shed.  "The  treaty,"  says  Bancroft,1  "was  not  a 
compromise, '  nor  a  compact  imposed  by  force,  but  a 
free  and  perfect  solution  and  perpetual  settlement  of 
all  that  had  been  called  in  question.  By  doing  an 
act  of  justice  to  her  former  colonies,  England  rescued 
her  own  liberties  at  home  from  imminent  danger,  and 
opened  the  way  for  their  slow  and  certain  develop- 
ment. The  narrowly  selfish  colonial  policy  which 
had  led  to  the  cruel  and  unnatural  war  was  cast 
aside  and  forever  by  Great  Britain,  which  was  hence- 
forward, as  the  great  colonizing  power,  to  sow  all  the 
oceans  with  the  seed  of  republics." 

The  supreme  question  for  the  clergy  of  the  old 
Church  of  England  and  their  friends  to  consider  was, 
what  to  do  in  the  changed  position  of  civil  affairs. 
No  notice  had  been  taken  of  their  religious  rights  in 
the  final  treaty,  but  they  were  given  over  wholly  to 
the  tender  mercies  of  those  who  had  been  their  en- 
emies, and  who,  at  this  time,  seem  to  have  had  no 
generous  sympathy  for  them  in  their  ruined  circum- 
stances. "At  the  peace,"  says  Sabine,  "a  majority  of 
the  Whigs  of  several  States  committed  a  great  crime. 
Instead  of  repealing  the  proscription  and  banishment 
acts,  as  justice  and  good  policy  required,  they  mani- 
fested a  disposition  to  place  the  humbled  and  un- 
happy loyalists  beyond  the  pale  of  human  sympa- 
thy." 2  He  cites  Massachusetts,  Virginia,  and  New 
York,  as  "  adopting  measures  of  inexorable  severity." 

1  History  of  the  United  States,  vol.  x.,  p.  591. 

2  Loyalists  of  the  American  Revolution,  vol.  i.,  p.  88. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  71 

Such  was  the  violence  threatened  in  New  York 
that  Sir  Guy  Carle  ton,  before  evacuating  the  city, 
wrote  to  the  President  of  Congress  that  the  loyalists 
"  conceived  the  safety  of  their  lives  depended  on  his 
removing  them,"  and  the  crown,  by  way  of  doing 
what  could  not  be  accomplished  in  the  negotiations 
for  peace,  offered  them  inducements  to  emigrate  to 
Nova  Scotia  and  other  British  territory,  where  they 
might  begin  settlements  and  found  cities.  Upwards 
of  twelve  thousand  men,  women,  and  children  are 
said  to  have  embarked  from  New  York  for  Nova 
Scotia  and  the  Bahamas,  before  Sir  Guy  Carleton 
withdrew  his  forces.  Many  of  the  clergy  followed 
their  people  and  were  appointed  to  new  missions  by 
the  venerable  Society,  with  increased  salaries,  besides 
receiving  grants  of  land. 

Dr.  Inglis,  whose  private  fortune  through  his  wife 
was  ample,  was  included  in  the  confiscation  act  of 
New  York,  and,  being  compelled  to  abandon  his 
church  and  rectory,  accompanied  some  loyalists  of  his 
congregation  to  Annapolis  in  Nova  Scotia.  The  in- 
strument by  which  he  relinquished  his  rights,  sealed 
and  delivered  in  the  presence  of  credible  witnesses, 
ran  thus:  "For  certain  just  and  lawful  causes,  me  and 
my  mind  hereunto  specially  moving,  without  compul- 
sion, fear,  fraud,  or  deceit,  [I]  do  purely,  simply,  and 
absolutely  resign  and  give  up  the  said  rectory  of  the 
parish  of  Trinity  Church  and  my  office  of  rector  in 
the  said  corporation."1  And  "  agreeable  to  the  de- 
sire of  the  Whig  Episcopalians,"  the  Rev.  Samuel 
Provoost  was  subsequently  called  and  inducted  into 
the  office  which  he  had  in  this  manner  vacated. 

1  Berrien's  History  of  Trinity  Church,  p.  161. 


72  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

It  was  the  25th  of  November,  1*783,  before  Sir  Guy 
Carleton  was  ready  to  evacuate  New  York  and  de- 
liver it  into  the  charge  of  General  Washington.  He 
had  been  delayed  in  this  purpose  by  his  care  for  the 
loyalists  and  for  the  large  amount  of  goods,  stores, 
and  military  supplies  which  had  accumulated  in  the 
city.  The  number  that  desired  to  be  sent  to  Nova 
Scotia  was  so  great  that  their  removal  could  not  be 
accomplished  in  a  shorter  time  with  the  transports  at 
his  command." 

Dr.  Seabury,  whatever  may  have  been  his  course 
hitherto,  had  no  disposition  to  flee  from  his  country ; 
but  his  parish  at  Westchester  was  so  broken  and 
ruined  that  he  could  not  return  to  it  and  resume 
his  ministry,  and  Staten  Island  was  in  a  condition 
scarcely  better.  He  remained  with  his  family  in 
New  York,  doing  what  he  could  for  their  support  and 
not  yet  knowing  what  work,  in  the  providence  of 
God,  he  might  be  called  to  undertake. 

Among  the  refugee  clergy  with  whom  he  had  been 
in  frequent  association  were  Jeremiah  Learning  and 
Richard  Mansfield,  both  having  been  driven  from  their 
missions  in  Connecticut,  and  both  deeply  interested  in 
the  revival  of  the  Church  in  that  State.  It  has  been 
seen  from  the  reports  to  the  Society  that  it  was  less 
depressed  and  deranged  here  than  elsewhere,  though 
all  the  clergy,  with  the  exception  of  John  Beach,  of 
Newtown,  had  been  compelled  to  disregard  the  oaths 
assumed  at  their  ordination,  and  to  omit,  in  using  the 
Liturgy,  the  prayers  for  the  king  and  royal  family. 
By  nothing,  however,  which  they  did  and  suffered, 
was  their  opinion  of  the  Church  and  its  organization 
changed.  They  were  all  men  who  had  crossed  the 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  73 

ocean  to  obtain  Holy  Orders,  and  they  believed  the 
first  step  to  be  taken  at  this  crisis  was  to  secure 
the  apostolic  office.  They  might  think  that  the  old 
opposition  of  Presbyterians  and  Congregationalists  to 
the  plan  of  an  American  Episcopate,  so  effectual  with 
the  authorities  at  home  before  the  Revolution,  would 
be  renewed ;  but  they  could  not  be  restrained  from 
attempting  to  supply  the  Church  in  Connecticut  with 
a  head,  more  necessary  now  than  ever,  before  pro- 
ceeding to  revise  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  and 
adapt  it  to  the  new  civil  circumstances. 

No  such  establishment  as  existed  in  England  was 
expected  or  desired  in  this  country.  It  was  said  by 
Dr.  Chauncy,  before  the  revolt  of  the  colonies,  that 
the  Episcopalians  "  had  in  view  nothing  short  of  a 
complete  Church  hierarchy  after  the  pattern  of  that 
at  home,  with  like  officers  in  all  their  various  degrees 
of  dignity,  with  a  like  large  revenue  for  their  sup- 
port, and  with  the  allowance  of  no  other  privilege  to 
dissenters  but  that  of  a  bare  toleration."  It  was  the 
fear  of  such  an  imaginary  hierarchy  that  kept  the 
adversaries  of  the  Church  perpetually  on  the  watch 
to  prevent  its  consummation.  In  vain  was  it  denied 
to  be  any  part  of  the  plan.  "  The  bishops  proposed," 
said  Dr.  Chandler,  "  were  to  have  no  temporal  power, 
and  consequently  to  hold  no  courts  for  the  exercise  of 
it ;  they  were  to  have  no  jurisdiction  at  all  over  any 
of  the  dissenters,  but  to  govern  the  Episcopal  clergy 
only ;  they  were  to  have  no  maintenance  from  the 
colonies  in  any  form ;  they  were  not  to  interfere  in 
any  matters  of  civil  government,  but  to  be  confined 
to  the  exercise  of  their  spiritual  functions  only." 

1  Chandler's  Appeal  farther  Defended,  p.  233. 


74  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

England  finally  lost  her  most  valuable  possessions 
in  America,  notwithstanding  her  efforts  by  a  subtle 
state  policy  to  retain  them.  The  British  cabinet 
might  acknowledge  that  an  American  Episcopate 
was  a  measure  right  in  itself,  but  the  representations 
of  dissenters  that  sending  bishops  to  this  country 
would  be  offensive  to  the  people  and  incline  them  to 
independence  were  strong  enough  to  keep  the  simple 
question  in  abeyance.  There  appeared  to  be  no  sep- 
aration of  Church  from  state  in  the  diplomatic  mind 
of  that  day,  and  men  on  this  side  detected  a  foe  un- 
der the  mitre  and  the  Episcopal  robes.  "  If  Parlia- 
ment," said  John  Adams,  "  could  tax  us,  they  could 
establish  the  Church  of  England,  with  all  its  creeds, 
articles,  tests,  ceremonies,  and  tithes,  and  prohibit  all 
other  churches  as  conventicles  and  schism-shops." * 

Undoubtedly  the  clergy  in  New  York,  after  the 
dismemberment  of  the  colonies,  came  together  in  a 
casual  way  and  consulted  about  the  course  to  be  pur- 
sued. Nothing  was  publicly  or  formally  done,  but 
suggestions  how  to  bring  order  out  of  confusion  must 
have  been  made,  and  thoughts  interchanged  on  the 
propriety  of  renewing  the  effort  to  obtain  from  Eng- 
lish bishops  the  consecration  of  some  suitable  Amer- 
ican clergyman  to  the  apostolic  office.  Mansfield  re- 
turned to  his  church  and  family  in  Derby,  Conn., 
before  the  cessation  of  hostilities ;  but  Learning  and 
John  Sayre  had  only  waste  fields  to  re-occupy,  and 
they  were  deterred  from  going  back  to  these  and  be- 
ginning anew  their  self-sacrificing  work.  Graves,  of 
New  London,  another  refugee,  whose  church  was  also 
laid  in  ashes  at  the  burning  of  the  town  by  Arnold, 

1  Works,  vol.  x.,  p.  287. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  75 

had  died  in  Ne'w  York  during  the  war ;  and  Peters, 
of  Hebron,  who  fled  to  England  at  the  outbreak  of 
the  Revolution  to  escape  popular  violence,  remained 
there,  and  published,  in  1781,  a  "  General  History  of 
Connecticut,"  which  is  more  of  a  curiosity  for  its 
fabulous  descriptions  than  a  reliable  authority  for  its 
statements. 


76  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 


CHAPTER   VI. 

CLERGY  IN  CONNECTICUT  BEFORE  THE  WAR,  AND  AT  ITS  CLOSE  ; 
CONVENTION  IN  WOODBURY,  AND  APPOINTMENT  OF  A  BISHOP  J 
TESTIMONIALS  FROM  REV.  MR.  JARVIS  AND  THE  CLERGY  OF  NEW 
YORK  IN  FAVOR  OF  DR.  SEABURY  ;  LETTERS  TO  THE  ARCHBISHOP 
OF  CANTERBURY,  AND  DEPARTURE  OF  DR.  SEABURY  FOR  ENGLAND. 

A.    D.    1783. 

THERE  were  twenty  clergymen  of  the  Church  of 
England  in  Connecticut,  with  twice  that  number  of 
parishes  or  missions,  when  the  war  began.  Besides 
those  mentioned  in  the  previous  chapter,  we  find 
Samuel  Andrews  of  Wallingford,  Richard  S.  Clark  of 
New  Milford,  Ebenezer  Dibblee  of  Stamford,  Daniel 
Fogg  of  Brooklyn,  Bela  Hubbard  of  New  Haven, 
Abraham  Jarvis  of  Middletown,  Ebenezer  Kneeland  of 
Stratford,  John  Rutgers  Marshall  of  Woodbury,  Chris- 
topher Newton  of  Ripton,  now  Huntington,  James 
Nichols  of  Plymouth,  James  Scovill  of  Waterbury, 
John  Tyler  of  Norwich,  Roger  Viets  of  Simsbury,  and 
to  these  must  be  added  Gideon  Bostwick  of  Great 
Barrington,  Mass.,  who  always  acted  and  was  reck- 
oned with  the  Connecticut  clergy.  Of  these,  Knee- 
land  died  a  prisoner  to  the  patriots  in  his  own  house 
on  the  17th  of  April,  1777;  and  the  venerable  Beach, 
of  Newtown,  who  had  never  ceased  to  pray  for  the 
king,  lived  till  March  19,  1782,  when  he  went  to 
his  welcome  rest  in  the  grave.  Mr.  Mansfield,  of 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY. 


77 


Derby,  preached  the  sermon  at  his  funeral,  which 
was  printed,  —  the  text  being  the  significant  one :  "  I 
have  fought  a  good  fight,  I  have  finished  my  course, 
I  have  kept  the  faith,"  -words  in  which  the  heroic 
and  saintly  servant  of  God  triumphed  a  few  hours 
before  his  death. 

Fourteen  clergymen  were  to  be  found  in  Connecti- 
cut at  the  close  of  the  war.  They  were  ministering  in 
some  way  to  their  feeble  and  impoverished  flocks,  and 
in  the  last  week  of  March,  1783,  ten  of  this  number 
met  in  the  quiet  village  of  Woodbury,  at  the  house 


House  in  which  Dr.  Seabury  was  chosen  Bishop. 

then  occupied  by  the  Rev.  John  Rutgers  Marshall,  a 
missionary  of  the  venerable  Society  and  rector  of 
St.  Paul's  Church  in  that  place.  The  house  is  still 
standing,  an  interesting  relic  and  reminder  of  an  im- 


78  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

portant  event  which  was  the  head  of  a  great  epoch 
in  American  ecclesiastical  history. 

No  laymen  were  admitted  to  the  gathering,  and 
it  was  so  secret  as  to  be  known  only  to  the  clergy. 
Who  of  the  fourteen  in  the  State  were  absent  can- 
not now  be  ascertained,  for  though  Mr.  Jarvis  was 
the  secretary,  no  minutes  were  kept  to  be  made  pub- 
lic, and  consequently  the  names  were  not  preserved. 
The  fear  of  opposition,  and  perhaps  the  fear  of  not 
having  the  hearty  concurrence  of  their  lay  brethren, 
led  to  the  secrecy  of  the  movement.  "  Ten  clergy- 
men met,"  says  Daniel  Fogg,  one  of  this  number,  in 
a  brief  note  to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Parker,  of  Boston,  dated 
July  2,  1783.  "  The  Connecticut  clergy  have  done 
already  everything  in  their  power,  in  the  matter  you 
were  anxious  about:  would  write  you  the  particulars, 
if  I  knew  of  any  safe  opportunity  of  sending  this  let- 
ter, but  as  I  do  not,  must  defer  it  till  I  do." 

They  met  in  the  lower  front  room  of  the  house,  on 
the  left  side  of  the  main  entrance,  and  on  the  25th 
of  March,  without  a  formal  election,  selected  two 
persons,  the  Rev.  JEREMIAH  LEAMING  and  the  Rev. 
SAMUEL  SEABURY,  as  suitable,  either  of  them,  to  go 
to  England  and  obtain,  if  possible,  Episcopal  conse- 
cration. Their  secretary  was  commissioned  and  sent 
to  New  York  to  consult  the  clergy  in  that  city  and 
submit  the  letters  which  had  been  prepared  and 
adopted  for  their  examination,  and,  if  approved,  to 
request  their  concurrence  and  aid  in  the  proposed 
applications. 

The  two  candidates  were  in  New  York,  and .  Mr. 
Learning,  to  whom  the  appointment  was  first  offered, 
shrank  at  his  time  of  life  and  with  his  infirmities  from 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  79 

undertaking  responsibilities  and  burdens  so  great. 
There  was  good  reason  for  giving  him  the  oppor- 
tunity to  decline  the  high  and  sacred  office.  For 
twenty-one  years  he  had  been  the  faithful  mission- 
ary at  Norwalk  and  had  used  his  pen  vigorously  in 
defending  the  Church  against  the  bitter  attacks  of 
her  enemies.  He  was  well  known  to  the  Connecticut 
clergy  and  a  long  intercourse  with  him  had  won  their 
entire  respect  and  confidence.  As  one  of  them  said 
at  the  time,  "  He  is  indeed  a  tried  servant  of  the 
Church  and  carries  about  him  in  a  degree  the  marks 
of  a  confessor."  Though  he  had  suffered  much  for 
his  loyalty,  both,  in  person  and  in  estate,  he  was  as 
little  prepared  to  accept  a  comfortable  home  and  sup- 
port in  the  British  provinces  as  to  return  to  the  scene 
of  his  former  ministrations,  now  laid  waste,  or  to  take 
up  the  burden  of  an  office  which  he  believed  to  be 
as  necessary  to  the  Church  as  the  head  to  the  body. 

On  the  other  hand,  Dr.  Seabury,  though  born  and 
educated  in  Connecticut,  had  exercised  no  part  of 
his  ministry  in  that  colony.  He  was  twelve  years 
younger  than  Learning,  without  bodily  infirmity,  and 
had  all  his  boldness  and*%eal  and  all  his  unflinching 
adherence  to  primitive  truth  and  apostolic  order.  It 
was  wisely  ordered  in  the  providence  of  God  that  he 
should  be  the  man  to  go  on  a  voyage  to  England  for 
Episcopal  consecration.  He  was  every  way  qualified 
to  meet  the  emergencies  of  the  time  and  to  overcome 
the  obstacles  that  were  to  be  thrown  in  his  path ;  and 
if  he  failed  in  England,  his  original  instructions  au- 
thorized him  to  apply  to  the  non-juring  bishops  of 
the  Episcopal  Church  in  Scotland,  with  which  he  be- 
came acquainted  many  years  before,  while  pursuing 
his  studies  at  the  University  of  Edinburgh. 


80  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

The  following  documents,  addressed  to  the  Arch- 
bishop of  York,  state  very  clearly  the  object  of  the 
clergy  of  Connecticut,  and  give  forcible  reasons  for 
the  success  of  their  application :  — 

NEW  YORK,  April  21,  1783. 

MY  LORD,  —  The  Clergy  of  Connecticut,  deeply  impressed 
with  anxious  apprehension  of  what  may  be  the  fate  of  the 
Church  in  America,  under  the  present  changes  of  empire 
and  policy,  beg  leave  to  embrace  the  earliest  moment  in 
their  power  to  address  your  Grace  on  that  important  sub- 
ject. 

This  part  of  America  is  at  length  dismembered  from  the 
British  Empire  ;  but,  notwithstanding  the  dissolution  of  our 
civil  connection  with  the  parent  state,  we  still  hope  to  retain 
the  religious  polity,  the  primitive  and  evangelical  doctrine 
and  discipline,  which,  at  the  Reformation,  were  restored  and 
established  in  the  Church  of  England.  To  render  that  pol- 
ity complete,  and  to  provide  for  its  perpetuity  in  this  coun- 
try, by  the  establishment  of  an  American  Episcopate,  has 
long  been  an  object  of  anxious  concern  to  us,  and  to  many 
of  our  brethren  in  other  parts  of  this  continent.  The  at- 
tainment of  this  object  appears  to  have  been  hitherto  ob- 
structed by  considerations  of  a  political  nature,  which  we 
conceive  were  founded  in  groundless  jealousies  and  misap- 
prehensions that  can  no  longer  be  supposed  to  exist ;  and 
therefore,  whatever  may  be  the  effect  of  independency  on 
this  country,  in  other  respects,  we  presume  it  will  be  allowed 
to  open  a  door  for  renewing  an  application  to  the  spiritual 
governors  of  the  Church  on  this  head  ;  an  application  which 
we  consider  as  not  only  seasonable,  but  more  than  ever  nec- 
essary at  this  time ;  because  if  it  be  now  any  longer  neg- 
lected, there  is  reason  to  apprehend  that  a  plan  of  a  very 
extraordinary  nature,  lately  formed  and  published  in  Phil- 
adelphia, may  be  carried  into  execution.  This  plan  is,  in 
brief,  to  constitute  a  nominal  Episcopate  by  the  united  suf- 
frages of  presbyters  and  laymen.  The  peculiar  situation  of 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  81 

the  Episcopal  Churches  in  America,  and  the  necessity  of 
adopting  some  speedy  remedy  for  the  want  of  a  regular 
Episcopate,  are  offered,  in  the  publication  here  alluded  to, 
as  reasons  fully  sufficient  to  justify  the  scheme.  Whatever 
influence  this  project  may  have  on  the  minds  of  the  igno- 
rant or  unprincipled  part  of  the  laity,  or  however  it  may, 
possibly,  be  countenanced  by  some  of  the  clergy  in  other 
parts  of  the  country,  we  think  it  our  duty  to  reject  such  a 
spurious  substitute  for  Episcopacy,  and,  as  far  as  may  be  in 
our  power,  to  prevent  its  taking  effect. 

To  lay  the  foundation,  therefore,  for  a  valid  and  regular 
Episcopate  in  America,  we  earnestly  entreat  your  Grace, 
that,  in  your  Archiepiscopal  character,  you  will  espouse  the 
cause  of  our  sinking  Church  ;  and,  at  this  important  cri- 
sis, afford  her  that  relief  on  which  her  very  existence  de- 
pends, by  consecrating  a  Bishop  for  Connecticut.  The  per- 
son whom  we  have  prevailed  upon  to  offer  himself  to  your 
Grace  for  that  purpose  is  the  Reverend  Doctor  Samuel  Sea- 
lury,  who  has  been  the  Society's  worthy  missionary  for 
many  years.  He  was  born  and  educated  in  Connecticut  — 
he  is  personally  known  to  us  —  and  we  believe  him  to  be 
every  way  qualified  for  the  Episcopal  Office,  and  for  the 
discharge  of  those  duties  peculiar  to  it,  in  the  present  trying 
and  dangerous  times. 

All  the  weighty  considerations  which  concur  to  enforce 
our  request  are  well  known  to  your  Grace  :  we  therefore 
forbear  to  enlarge,  lest  we  should  seem  to  distrust  your 
Grace's  zeal  in  a  cause  of  such  acknowledged  importance  to 
the  interests  of  religion.  Suffer  us  then  to  rest  in  humble 
confidence  that  your  Grace  will  hear  and  grant  our  petition, 
and  give  us  the  consolation  of  receiving,  through  a  clear  and 
uninterrupted  channel,  an  overseer  in  this  part  of  the  house- 
hold of  God. 

That  God  may  continue  your  life  and  health,  make  you  in 
his  Providence  an  eminent  instrument  of  great  and  exten- 
sive usefulness  to  mankind  in  general,  a  lasting  blessing  to 
the  Church  over  which  you  preside  in  particular ;  and  that 
6 


82  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

the  present  and  future  sons  of  the  Church  in  America  may 
have  cause  to  record  and  perpetuate  your  name  as  their 
friend  and  spiritual  father,  —  and,  when  your  sacred  work  is 
ended,  that  you  may  find  it  gloriously  rewarded,  is  and  shall 
be  the  devout  prayer  of  the  Clergy  of  Connecticut,  by 
whose  order  (in  convention  assembled)  and  in  whose  behalf 
this  letter  is  addressed  to  your  Grace  by  your  Grace's  most 
obedient,  humble  servant, 

ABRAHAM  JARVIS, 

Minister  of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  Middletown,  and  Sec- 
retary to  the  Convention. 

TESTIMONIAL. 

WHEREAS  our  well  beloved  in  Christ,  Samuel  Seabury, 
Doctor  of  Divinity,  and  missionary  of  Staten  Island  in  this 
Province,  is  about  to  embark  for  England,  at  the  earnest  re- 
quest of  the  Episcopal  Clergy  of  Connecticut,  and  for  the 
purpose  of  presenting  himself  a  candidate  for  the  sacred  of- 
fice of  a  Bishop ;  and  that  when  consecrated  and  admitted 
to  the  said  office,  he  may  return  to  Connecticut,  and  there 
exercise  the  spiritual  powers,  and  discharge  the  duties  which 
are  peculiar  to  the  Episcopal  character,  among  the  members 
of  the  Church  of  England,  by  superintending  the  Clergy, 
ordaining  candidates  for  Holy  Orders,  and  confirming  such 
of  the  Laity  as  may  choose  to  be  confirmed.  We  the  sub- 
scribers, desirous  to  testify  our  hearty  concurrence  in  this 
measure,  and  promote  its  success ;  as  well  as  to  declare  the 
high  opinion  we  justly  entertain  of  Doctor  Seabury's  learn- 
ing, abilities,  prudence,  and  zeal  for  religion,  do  hereby  cer- 
tify, that  we  have  been  personally  and  intimately  acquainted 
with  the  said  Doctor  Seabury  for  many  years  past  —  that 
we  believe  him  to  be  every  way  qualified  for  the  sacred 
office  of  a  Bishop ;  the  several  duties  of  which  office,  we  are 
firmly  persuaded,  he  will  discharge  with  honor,  dignity,  and 
fidelity,  and  consequently  with  advantage  to  the  Church  of 
God. 

And  we  cannot  forbear  to  express  our  most  earnest  wish 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  83 

that  Doctor  Seabury  may  succeed  in  this  application,  as  it 
will  be  the  means  of  preserving  the  Church  of  England  in 
America  from  ruin,  and  of  preventing  many  irregularities 
which  we  see  approaching,  and  which,  if  once  introduced,  no 
after  care  may  be  able  to  remove. 

Given  under  our  hands,  at  New  York,  this  twenty-first  day 
of  April,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  seven  hun- 
dred and  eighty -three. 

JEREMIAH  LEAMING,  D.  D. ; 
CHARLES  INGLIS,  D.  D., 
Rector  of  Trinity  Church,  New  York; 

BENJAMIN  MOORE,  D.  D., 
Assistant  Minister  of  Trinity  Church, 
New  York ;  and  others. 

NEW  YORK,  May  24,  1783. 

MY  LORD,  —  The  Reverend  Doctor  Samuel  Seabury  will 
have  the  honor  of  presenting  this  letter  to  your  Grace.  He 
goes  to  England,  at  the  request  of  the  Episcopal  Clergy  of 
Connecticut,  on  business  highly  interesting  and  important. 
They  have  written  on  the  subject  to  your  Grace,  and  also  to 
the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  and  the  Bishop  of  London. 
But,  as  they  were  pleased  to  consult  us  on  the  occasion,  and 
to  submit  what  they  had  written  to  our  inspection,  request- 
ing our  concurrence  in  their  application,  their  letters  are 
dated  at  New  York,  and  signed  only  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Jarvis, 
the  secretary  to  their  convention,  whom  they  commissioned 
and  sent  here  for  that  purpose. 

The  measure  proposed,  on  this  occasion,  by  our  brethren 
of  Connecticut,  could  not  fail  to  have  our  hearty  concur- 
rence. For  we  are  decidedly  of  opinion,  that  no  other 
means  can  be  devised  to  preserve  the  existence  of  the  Epis- 
copal Church  in  this  country.  We  have  therefore  joined 
with  Mr.  Jarvis  in  giving  Doctor  Seabury  a  testimonial,  in 
which  we  have  briefly,  but  sincerely,  expressed  our  sense  of 
his  merit,  and  our  earnest  wishes  for  the  success  of  his  un- 
dertaking. 


84  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

Should  he  succeed  and  be  consecrated,  he  means  (with 
the  approbation  of  the  Society)  to  return  in  the  character, 
and  perform  the  duties  of  a  missionary,  at  New  London,  in 
Connecticut;  and  on  his  arrival  in  that  country,  to  make 
application  to  the  Governor,  in  hope  of  being  cheerfully  per- 
mitted to  exercise  the  spiritual  powers  of  his  Episcopal  office 
there ;  in  which,  we  are  persuaded,  he  will  meet  with  little, 
if  any  opposition.  For  many  persons  of  character  in  Con- 
necticut, and  elsewhere,  who  are  not  members  of  the  Epis- 
copal Church,  have  lately  declared  they  have  no  longer  any 
objection  to  an  American  Episcopate,  now  that  the  inde- 
pendency of  this  country,  acknowledged  by  Great  Britain, 
has  removed  their  apprehensions  of  the  Bishops  being  in- 
vested with  a  share  of  temporal  power  by  the  British  gov- 
ernment. 

We  flatter  ourselves  that  any  impediments  to  the  conse- 
cration of  a  -Bishop  for  America,  arising  from  the  peculiar 
constitution  of  the  Church  of  England,  may  be  removed  by 
the  King's  royal  permission  ;  and  we  cannot  entertain  a 
doubt  of  his  Majesty's  readiness  to  grant  it. 

In  humble  confidence  that  your  Grace  will  consider  the 
object  of  this  application  as  a  measure  worthy  of  your  zeal- 
ous patronage,  we  beg  leave  to  remind  your  Grace,  that  sev- 
eral legacies  have  been,  at  different  times,  bequeathed  for 
the  support  of  Bishops  in  America,  and  to  express  our  hopes 
that  some  part  of  those  legacies,  or  of  the  interest  arising 
from  them,  may  be  appropriated  to  the  maintenance  of  Doc- 
tor Seabury,  in  case  he  is  consecrated,  and  settles  in  Amer- 
ica. We  conceive  that  the  separation  of  this  country  from 
the  parent  state  can  be  no  reasonable  bar  to  such  appropria- 
tion, nor  invalidate  the  title  of  American  Bishops,  who  de- 
rive their  consecration  from  the  Church  of  England,  to  the 
benefit  of  those  legacies.  And  perhaps  this  charitable  as- 
sistance is  now  more  necessary  than  it  would  have  been,  had 
not  the  empire  been  dismembered. 

We  take  this  opportunity  to  inform  your  Grace,  that  we 
have  consulted  his  excellency  Sir  Guy  Carleton  on  the  sub- 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  85 

ject  of  procuring  the  appointment  of  a  Bishop  for  the  prov- 
ince of  Nova  Scotia,  on  which  he  has  expressed  to  us  his  en- 
tire approbation,  and  has  written  to  administration,  warmly 
recommending  the  measure.  We  took  the  liberty,  at  the 
same  time,  of  mentioning  our  worthy  brother,  the  Rev.  Doc- 
tor Thomas  B.  Chandler,  to  his  excellency,  as  a  person  every 
way  qualified  to  discharge  the  duties  of  the  Episcopal  office 
in  that  province,  with  dignity  and  honor.  And  we  hope  for 
your  Grace's  approbation  of  what  we  have  done  in  that  mat- 
ter, and  for  the  concurrence  of  your  influence  with  Sir  Guy 
Carleton's  recommendation  in  promoting  the  design. 

We  should  have  given  this  information  sooner  to  your 
Grace,  but  that  we  waited  for  Doctor  Seabury's  departure 
for  England,  which  we  considered  as  affording  the  best  and 
most  proper  conveyance. 

If  Doctor  Chandler  and  Doctor  Seabury  should  both  suc- 
ceed, as  we  pray  God  they  may,  we  trust  that,  with  the 
blessing  of  Heaven,  the  Episcopal  Church  will  yet  flourish 
in  this  western  hemisphere. 

With  the  warmest  sentiments  of  respect  and  esteem,  we 
have  the  honor  to  be,  my  Lord,  your  Grace's  most  dutiful 
sons,  and  obedient  humble  servants, 

JEREMIAH  LEAMING,  D.  D. ; 
CHARLES  INGLIS,  D.  D., 
Rector  of  Trinity  Church,  New  York  ; 

BENJAMIN  MOORE,  D.  D., 
Assistant  Minister  of  Trinity  Church, 

New  York  ;  and  others. 
His  GRACE  THE  ARCHBISHOP  OF  YORK. 

The  letters  written  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Jar  vis  and  the 
clergy  of  New  York,  to  the  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury, were  longer  and  more  detailed  in  their  state- 
ments than  those  addressed  to  the  Archbishop  of 
York.  They  were  the  same  in  spirit  and  yet  so  dif- 
ferent in  the  text  as  to  make  it  desirable  to  give 
them  a  place  in  this  chapter.  Mr.  Jarvis,  who  was 


86  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

particularly  skillful  in  the  preparation  of  ecclesiasti- 
cal documents,  drew  up,  as  the.ir  secretary,  the  let- 
ters for  the  clergy  of  Connecticut,  and  the  original 
draught  of  the  one  to  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury 
contained  a  few  passages  which  were  erased  when  it 
came  to  be  submitted  to  the  inspection  of  the  friends 
in  New  York.  This  was  an  omitted  passage,  refer- 
ring to  the  war  of  the  Ke volution :  "  During  the  ar- 
duous struggle,  the  Church  in  this  country  was  passed 
over  without  notice,  and  we  grieve  to  find  that  in  the 
conclusion  she  was  not  thought  worth  regarding.  In 
the  severest  season  of  the  conflict,  none  of  her  faith- 
ful members  conceived  of  this  as  possible,  much  less 
did  they  dream  of  it  as  probable.  But  we  mean  not 
here  to  dwell  on  unavailing  complaint." 

MAY  IT  PLEASE  YOUR  GRACE,  —  In  this  day  of  anxiety 
for  the  Church  in  America,  the  clergy  of  Connecticut,  deeply 
impressed  with  apprehensions  of  what  will  be  her  fate  under 
the  present  changes  of  empire  and  policy,  beg  leave  to  em- 
brace the  earliest  moment  in  their  power  to  address  your 
Grace  with  all  the  unaffected  freedom  which  may  become 
the  ministers  of  Christ  when  pleading  the  cause  of  that 
Church;  a  cause  wherein  not  only  her  interest  is  greatly 
concerned,  but  on  which  her  very  existence  depends. 

America  is  now  severed  from  the  British  empire ;  by  that 
separation  we  cease  to  be  a  part  of  the  national  Church. 
But  although  political  changes  affect  and  dissolve  our  exter- 
nal connection,  and  cut  us  off  from  the  powers  of  the  state, 
yet  we  hope  a  door  still  remains  open  for  access  to  the  gov- 
ernors of  the  Church ;  and  what  they  might  not  do  for  us 
without  the  permission  of  government,  while  we  were  bound 
as  subjects  to  ask  favors  and  receive  them  under  its  auspices 
and  sanction :  they  may,  in  right  of  their  inherent  spiritual 
powers,  grant  and  exercise  in  favor  of  a  Church  planted 
and  nurtured  by  their  hand,  and  now  subjected  to  other 


OF    SAMUEL  SEABURY.  87 

powers.  As  it  is  our  only  refuge,  we  are  persuaded  no  just 
exceptions  can  lie  against  the  attempt  to  avail  ourselves  of 
it ;  and  the  uniform  benevolent  part  the  Bishops  have  taken 
in  order  to  transfer  the  Episcopal  authority  into  America 
fills  us  with  the  greater  confidence  of  success  in  the  applica- 
tion. 

To  secure  to  our  Church  a  valid  and  undoubted  Episco- 
pate, and  that  the  several  vacant  churches  may  be  furnished 
with  ministers  as  soon  as  possible,  are  what  we  have  much 
at  heart. 

A  further  reason,  we  beg  leave  to  observe,  that  induces  us 
to  take  this  early  and  only  measure  we  can  devise  for  this 
purpose,  is  effectually  to  prevent  the  carrying  into  execution 
a  plan  of  a  very  extraordinary  nature,  lately  come  to  our 
knowledge,  formed  and  published  in  Philadelphia,  and,  as  we 
suppose,  circulating  in  the  Southern  States,  with  design  to 
have  it  adopted.  The  plan  is,  in  brief,  to  constitute  a  nomi- 
nal ideal  Episcopate,  by  the  united  suffrages  of  presbyters 
and  laymen.  The  singular  and  peculiar  situation  of  the 
American  Church,  the  exigence  of  the  case,  and  the  neces- 
sity of  adopting  some  speedy  and  specious  remedy,  corre- 
sponding with  the  state  of  affairs  in  the  country,  are  some  of 
the  pleas  which  are  adduced  as  adequate  to  give  full  sanc- 
tion to  this  scheme.  To  what  degree  such  a  plan  may  oper- 
ate upon  the  minds  of  the  uninformed,  unstable,  or  unprinci- 
pled part  of  the  Church,  we  can  at  present  form  no  opinion ; 
equally  unable  are  we  to  conjecture  what  may  be  the  lengths 
to  which  the  rage  for  popular  right,  as  the  fountain  of  all  in- 
stitutions, civil  and  ecclesiastical,  will  run ;  sufficient  for  us  it 
is,  that  while  we  conscientiously  reject  such  a  spurious  sub- 
stitute for  episcopacy,  we  also  think  it  our  duty  to  take  every 
step  within  our  power  to  frustrate  its  pernicious  effects. 
Thus  are  we  afloat,  torn  from  our  anchor,  and  surrounded 
with  shelves  and  rocks,  on  which  we  are  in  danger  of  being 
dashed  to  pieces,  and  have  but  one  port  into  which  we  can 
look,  and  from  whence  expect  relief. 

The  distinguished  light  in  which   we  have  been  always 


88  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

taught  to  view  your  Grace  as  an  able  and  zealous  patron  of 
the  American  Church,  decidedly  points  out  to  whom,  in  this 
crisis,  we  are  instantly  to  make  our  request.  Accordingly, 
to  your  Grace  we  have  recourse,  and  humbly  present  our 
petition,  that  in  your  archiepiscopal  character  you  will  es- 
pouse the  cause  of  our  sinking  Church,  and  afford  her  re- 
lief by  consecrating  the  person  for  our  bishop  whom  we 
have  prevailed  upon  to  offer  himself  to  your  Grace  for  that 
purpose. 

The  gentleman  we  beg  leave  to  present  to  your  Grace  is 
the  Reverend  Doctor  Samuel  Seabury,  who  has  been  the 
Society's  worthy  missionary  for  many  years.  He  was  born 
and  educated  in  Connecticut ;  he  is  personally  known  to  us, 
and  we  believe  him  to  be  every  way  qualified  for  the  Epis- 
copal office,  and  for  the  discharge  of  those  duties  peculiar  to 
it  in  the  present  trying  and  dangerous  times. 

Permit  us  to  suggest,  with  all  deference,  our  firm  persua- 
sion that  a  sense  of  the  sacred  deposit  committed  by  the 
great  Head  of  the  Church  to  her  bishops,  is  so  awfully  im- 
pressed on  your  Grace's  mind,  as  not  to  leave  a  moment's 
doubt  in  us  of  your  being  heartily  disposed  to  rescue  the 
American  Church  from  the  distress  and  danger,  which  now 
more  than  ever  threatens  her  for  want  of  an  Episcopate. 
We  rely  on  your  Grace's  indulgence  for  the  liberty  we  take 
to  assert  that  it  is  a  real  act  of  charity,  while  we  humbly 
trust,  the  blessing  of  her  that  is  ready  to  perish  will  come 
upon  those  that  befriend  her  in  this  necessity.  Well  known 
unto  your  Grace  are  all  those  irrefutable  arguments  that 
have  been  so  clearly  stated,  and  strongly  urged  by  the  illus- 
trious prelates  who  have,  as  our  fathers  in  God,  advocated 
for  us. 

Wherefore  as  the  whole  of  our  case,  and  all  the  weighty 
considerations  which  concur  to  enforce  it,  are  present  with 
you,  we  forbear  to  enlarge,  lest  the  multitude  of  our  words 
should  imply  a  diffidence  of  success  in  the  thing  we  ask. 
Suffer  us  then  to  rest  in  humble  confidence,  that  this  our  so- 
licitude for  a  matter  in  itself  so  important  to  the  Church  of 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  89 

God,  will  meet  with  your  fullest  approbation,  and  that  your 
Grace  will  feel  affectionately  for  us,  and  from  a  pious  zeal 
to  advance  real  religion,  and  propagate  the  true  Church  of 
Christ,  will  judge  it  clearly  your  duty,  in  the  exercise  of 
your  high  and  holy  office,  to  hear  and  grant  our  petition,  and 
give  us  the  consolation  of  receiving,  through  a  clear  and 
uninterrupted  channel  transmitted  to  us  by  your  Grace's 
hands,  an  overseer  in  this  part  of  the  household  of  God. 

That  God  may  continue  your  life  and  health,  make  you, 
in  his  providence,  an  eminent  instrument  of  great  and  exten- 
sive usefulness  to  mankind  in  general,  a  lasting  blessing  to 
the  church  over  which  you  preside  in  particular,  and  that 
the  present  and  future  sons  of  the  Church  in  America  may 
have  cause  to  record  and  perpetuate  your  name  as  their 
friend  and  spiritual  father,  and  when  your  sacred  work  is 
ended  that  you  may  find  it  gloriously  rewarded,  is  and  shall 
be  the  devout  prayer  of  the  clergy  of  Connecticut,  by  whoso 
order  and  in  whose  behalf  this  letter  is  signed  by  your 
Grace's  most  obedient,  humble  servant, 

ABRAHAM  JAEVIS, 

Minister  of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  Middletown,  and  Sec- 
retary to  the  Convention. 

NEW  YORK,  May  24,  1783. 

MY  LORD,  —  The  Reverend  Doctor  Samuel  Seabury  will 
have  the  honor  of  presenting  this  letter  to  your  Grace.  At 
the  request  of  the  Episcopal  clergy  of  Connecticut,  he  goes 
to  England  on  business  highly  interesting  and  important, 
namely  :  to  be  consecrated  by  your  Grace,  and  admitted  to 
the  sacred  office  of  a  bishop  ;  after  which,  he  purposes  to 
return  to  Connecticut,  and  there  exercise  the  spiritual  pow- 
ers which  belong  to  the  Episcopal  character. 

Although  the  letter  which  Doctor  Seabury  carries  from 
the  clergy  of  Connecticut  to  your  Grace,  and  the  testimonial 
with  which  he  is  furnished,  set  forth  his  design,  and  point 
out  the  necessity  of  carrying  it  into  execution ;  yet  we  con- 
ceived it  to  be  our  duty,  in  a  matter  of  such  moment,  to  give 
every  support  in  our  power  to  Doctor  Seabury,  by  writing 


90  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

to  your  Grace  (as  we  have  also  done  to  his  lordship  of  Lon- 
don, and  his  Grace  of  York),  and  laying  our  sentiments  on 
the  subject  before  you,  especially  as  the  clergy  of  Connecti- 
cut chose  to  consult  us  on  the  occasion,  and  submit  their 
letter  to  our  inspection,  that  we  might  act  in  concert  with 
them ;  and  this  is  the  reason  why  their  letter  to  your  Grace 
is  dated  at  New  York,  and  is  only  signed  by  the  Reverend 
Mr.  Jarvis,  the  secretary  to  their  convention,  whom  they 
commissioned  and  sent  here  for  the  purpose. 

Thex  separation  of  these  colonies  from  the  parent  state 
leaves  the  Church  of  England  here  in  a  most  deplorable 
situation.  For  as  the  event  was  unexpected,  no  provision 
was  made  to  guard  against  its  consequences.  Whilst  the 
colonies  were  dependent  on  England,  they  were  thence  sup- 
plied with  clergymen.  The  supply  indeed  was  scanty,  and 
inadequate  to  the  wants  of  the  colonists ;  yet  the  Church 
was  preserved  in  existence,  and,  through  the  blessing  of 
Providence,  increased  in  many  places.  To  remove  the  hard- 
ships under  which  the  Church  labored,  particularly  in  the 
affair  of  ordination,  and  to  procure  a  more  ample  supply  of 
clergymen,  which  would  greatly  promote  the  growth  of  the 
Church,  the  clergy  of  several  provinces  repeatedly  applied 
that  one  or  more  bishops  might  be  appointed  to  reside  in 
America.  Their  applications,  though  approved  and  warmly 
supported  by  many  illustrious  dignitaries  of  our  Church,  and 
others ;  yet,  either  through  inattention  in  government  or 
mistaken  maxims  of  policy,  were  disregarded.  Hereby  the 
Church  in  America  is  now  utterly  helpless,  and  unable  to 
preserve  itself.  As  the  colonies  are  become  independent,  no 
ordination  in  the  usual  way  can,  as  we  presume,  be  procured 
from  England.  A  few  years  must  carry  off  such  of  the 
present  clergy  as  can  remain  in  the  United  States,  and  with 
them  the  Church  of  which  they  are  members  will  be  extinct. 

This  melancholy  event  is  inevitable  if  some  remedy  is  not 
applied  ;  and  the  only  expedient  that  could  be  devised  to 
prevent  it  is  the  one  now  proposed.  Should  Doctor  Seabury 
succeed,  and  be  consecrated,  he  means  to  return  in  the  char- 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  91 

acter  and  perform  the  duties  of  a  missionary  at  New  Lon- 
don, in  Connecticut.  This,  we  apprehend,  will  secure  to 
him  at  least  a  safe  reception  there,  and  prepare  the  way 
gradually  for  exercising  the  spiritual  powers  of  a  bishop,  by 
superintending  the  clergy,  ordaining  candidates  for  Holy 
Orders,  and  administering  confirmation  to  such  of  the  laity 
as  shall  choose  to  be  confirmed.  To  which,  we  are  per- 
suaded, the  minds  of  people  will  be  reconciled  by  the  time 
his  Episcopal  character  is  generally  known.  For,  consist- 
ently with  our  original  plan  for  an  American  Episcopate,  he 
will  have  no  temporal  power  or  authority  whatever.  If  a 
bishop  is  once  established  in  Connecticut,  we  are  confident 
that  bishops  will  soon  be  admitted  into  the  other  colonies  ; 
so  that  the  fate  of  all  the  churches  in  the  united  colonies  is 
virtually  involved  in  the  success  of  this  application. 

Such,  my  lord,  is  our  state,  and  such  are  our  views.  It 
remains  now  with  your  Grace  to  afford  that  relief  to  the 
Church  of  God  here,  which  it  stands  so  much  in  need  of, 
and  save  it  from  utterly  perishing  in  the  United  States  of 
America,  by  consecrating  Doctor  Seabury,  and  thereby  con- 
veying to  us  a  valid  and  regular  Episcopate.  We  have  the 
fullest  persuasion  of  your  Grace's  zeal  in  whatever  concerns 
the  cause  of  religion,  as  well  as  reliance  on  your  firmness  to 
support  that  cause  against  groundless  objections  or  inter- 
vening difficulties.  We  consider  the  political  impediments, 
which  formally  obstructed  the  appointment  of  bishops  in 
America,  as  now  entirely  removed, — they  no  longer  exist. 
England  can  have  no  apprehensions  from  the  disgust  that 
may  be  given  to  dissenters  by  this  measure.  Whatever  risk 
shall  attend  it  can  only  be  incurred  by  Doctor  Seabury  and 
the  other  members  of  the  Church  here  ;  and  however  hazard- 
ous the  attempt,  they  are  willing  to  embark  in  it  rather  than 
by  their  lukewarmness  to  become  accessory  to  the  ruin  of  the 
Church  of  God.  Indeed,  it  is  but  justice  to  mention  that 
many  eminent  dissenters  in  Connecticut  and  other  provinces 
have  lately  declared  that  they  have  no  objections  to  bishops 
here  now,  when  the  independency  of  America  is  acknowl- 


92  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

edged  by  Great  Britain.  It  is  not  from  such,  but  from  men 
of  an  illiberal  turn,  in  whom  prejudice  gets  the  better  of  a 
sense  of  justice  and  right,  that  danger  is  to  be  apprehended  ; 
and  of  this  latter  sort  there  are  too  many  in  all  places. 

We  flatter  ourselves  that  the  impediments  to  the  consecra- 
tion of  a  bishop,  who  is  to  remove  out  of  the  British  domin- 
ions, will  be  got  over,  when  the  necessity  of  the  case  and 
the  peculiarity  of  our  situation  are  considered.  Regulations 
which  are  merely  local,  and  designed  to  preserve  order  in  a 
particular  state,  should  certainly  be  observed  with  regard  to 
bishops  who  are  to  reside  in  that  state.  But  we  humbly 
conceive  they  do  not  apply  to  extraordinary  emergencies  like 
the  present;  nor  ought  they  to  interfere  with  the  general 
interests  of  Christianity,  especially  when  no  inconvenience 
can  ensue.  On  this  principle  the  practice  of  the  Christian 
Church,  for  many  ages,  seems  to  have  been  founded.  For 
the  light  of  the  gospel  has  been  diffused  and  the  Christian 
Church  planted  and  established  in  most  nations  of  Christen- 
dom, by  bishops  and  other  missionaries  from  such  as  had 
no  temporal  jurisdiction  in  those  nations.  But  should  it  be 
thought  that  peculiar  difficulties,  in  the  present  instance, 
must  arise  from  the  constitution  of  the  Church  of  England, 
we  doubt  not  but  the  king,  as  supreme  head  of  that  church, 
is  competent  to  remove  them.  His  royal  permission  would 
fully  authorize  your  Grace  to  consecrate  Doctor  Seabury. 
And  when  we  reflect  on  his  majesty's  undeviating  regard, 
as  well  to  the  practice  as  to  whatever  may  tend  to  promote 
the  influence  of  true  religion,  we  cannot  hesitate  to  believe 
that  his  permission  for  the  purpose  may  be  obtained.  Give 
us  leave  to  add,  that  such  an  indulgence,  in  a  matter  so  ear- 
nestly desired  by  people,  whose  attachment  to  his  royal  per- 
son and  government  has  involved  them  in  many  and  great 
difficulties,  would  be  worthy  of  his  princely  disposition  and 
paternal  goodness. 

It  may  be  proper  to  inform  your  Grace  that  the  late  con- 
fusions have  been  fatal  to  great  numbers  of  the  American 
clergy.  Many  have  died ;  others  have  been  banished ;  so 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  93 

that  several  parishes  are  now  destitute  of  incumbents.  In 
the  four  colonies  of  Connecticut,  New  York,  New  Jersey, 
and  Pennsylvania,  we  know  at  this  time  of  no  less  than 
seventy  vacant  churches,  to  say  nothing  of  many  large  tracts 
of  country,  where  several  congregations  might  immediately 
be  formed  and  churches  built  were  there  clergymen  to  offi- 
ciate. We  believe  the  case  of  other  colonies,  in  this  respect, 
to  be  nearly  similar,  and  it  would  be  very  difficult,  perhaps 
impossible,  to  procure  such  a  number  of  clergymen  from 
England  as  are  wanted,  even  supposing  the  former  inter- 
course were  restored ;  yet  we  are  of  opinion  that  all  those 
vacancies  would  soon  be  filled  were  bishops  here  to  confer 
Holy  Orders.  The  demand  for  clergymen  will  be  further 
increased  by  the  general  disposition  that  prevails  among  dis- 
senters at  present,  to  join  the  Church  of  England.  This  is 
most  remarkable  in  Connecticut,  where  numbers  are  daily 
added  to  the  Church,  and  from  the  best  information  we  are 
assured  that  a  similar  disposition  appears  in  other  colonies. 

We  cannot  omit  another  circumstance  which  is  of  great 
moment.  Some  alterations  in  the  Liturgy  must  be  made  in 
consequence  of  independency  ;  particularly  in  the  collects 
for  the  king  and  royal  family.  The  offices  for  November 
5th,  January  30th,  May  29th,  and  October  25th  must  be 
omitted.  A  revision  of  the  canons  will  be  expedient,  be- 
cause many  of  them,  as  they  now  stand,  are  wholly  inappli- 
cable to  the  state  of  things  here.  But  it  must  be  the  wish 
of  every  sound  churchman  that  no  alteration  may  take  place, 
except  where  it  is  indispensably  necessary,  and  that  an  en- 
tire uniformity  be  preserved  among  all  the  churches  in  the 
several  colonies.  How  these  desirable  objects  can  be  ob- 
tained without  bishops,  we  are  unable  to  see.  It  would  be 
improper  for  presbyters  to  make  those  alterations,  suppos- 
ing they  were  perfectly  unanimous.  But  divisions  will  be 
unavoidable  where  all  are  equal,  and  there  is  no  superior  to 
control.  The  common  bond  which  united  the  clergy  being 
now  dissolved,  some  will  think  themselves  at  liberty  to  use 
only  such  parts  of  the  Liturgy,  and  adopt  such  rules  as  they 


94  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

choose ;  and  hence  the  several  congregations  may  become  so 
many  independent  churches,  each  varying  from  the  other, 
as  the  fancy  of  the  clergyman  may  direct.  We  are  sorry 
to  inform  your  Grace  that  some  symptoms  of  this  kind  have 
already  appeared,  though  it  is  only  in  a  few  individuals. 
The  superintending  authority  of  a  bishop  will  guard  against 
those  evils ;  it  will  secure  unanimity  and  submission,  prevent 
dangerous  innovations  and  all  unnecessary  departure  from 
the  established  articles,  rules,  and  forms  of  our  excellent 
Church. 

But  we  shall  not  protract  this  letter  by  inserting  more  par- 
ticulars relative  to  the  state  of  the  clergy  and  Churches  here, 
of  which  Dr.  Seabury  will  be  able  to  give  you  any  informa- 
tion your  Grace  may  desire.  We  shall  only  beg  leave  to  re- 
mind your  Grace  that  several  legacies  have  been  successively 
bequeathed  for  the  support  of  bishops  in  America  ;  and  to 
express  our  hopes  that  some  part  of  those  legacies,  or  of  the 
interest  arising  from  them,  may  be  appropriated  to  the  main- 
tenance of  Dr.  Seabury,  in  case  he  is  consecrated,  and  re- 
turns to  Connecticut.  We  do  not  conceive  that  the  separa- 
tion of  these  colonies  from  the  parent  state  can  be  a  bar  to 
this  appropriation,  or  invalidate  the  title  of  bishops  of  the 
Church  of  England  to  the  benefit  of  those  legacies.  And 
perhaps  this  charitable  assistance  is  more  necessary  now, 
than  formerly  ;  since  American  bishops  must  have  more  dif- 
ficulties to  struggle  with,  in  consequence  of  the  separation ; 
and  no  other  mode  of  support  can  be  provided  for  them,  until 
our  confusions  subside,  and  the  government  of  this  country 
assumes  a  more  settled  form. 

Having  thus  with  all  plainness  and  sincerity  represented 
our  case,  we  shall  urge  no  further  arguments  for  a  compli- 
ance with  our  request,  as  it  would  imply  a  doubt  of  your 
Grace's  readiness  to  promote  a  measure,  in  which  the  inter- 
ests of  Christianity  in  general,  and  of  the  Episcopal  Church 
in  particular,  are  so  much  concerned.  A  miscarriage  on 
this  occasion  would  preclude  all  hope  of  succeeding  hereafter 
in  England,  where  duty  and  inclination  lead  us  to  apply 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  95 

for  an  episcopate,  and  many  bad  consequences  would  un- 
avoidably follow.  It  would  forward  the  pernicious  scheme 
alluded  to  by  the  clergy  of  Connecticut  in  their  letter  to 
your  Grace ;  it  might  probably  give  rise  to  applications  for 
an  episcopate  to  foreign  states,  which  must  be  attended  with 
many  inconveniences  ;  or  possibly  the  issue  might  be  a  total 
extinction  of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United  States  of 
America. 

We  shall  only  add,  that  we  have  consulted  his  excellency, 
Sir  Guy  Carleton,  the  commander-in-chief,  on  this  subject, 
anc}  on  the  appointment  of  a  bishop  to  Nova  Scotia ;  both  of 
which  have  his  entire  approbation.  As  Nova  Scotia  is  to  re- 
main a  part  of  the  British  dominions,  it  was  necessary  that 
application  should  be  made  to  government  before  the  ap- 
pointment there  could  take  place ;  and  the  commander-in- 
chief  has,  at  our  request,  written  very  pressingly  to  admin- 
istration, and  warmly  recommended  the  measure.  We  took 
the  liberty  at  the  same  time  to  recommend  our  worthy 
brother,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  B.  Chandler,  as  a  person  well 
qualified  to  discharge  the  duties  of  the  Episcopal  office  in 
that  province  with  dignity  and  honor.  And  we  hope  for 
your  Grace's  approbation  of  what  we  did  in  this  matter, 
and  for  your  kind  assistance  in  promoting  the  design  ;  of  which 
we  should  have  given  information  to  your  Grace  sooner, 
had  we  not  waited  for  Dr.  Seabury's  departure  for  England, 
and  we  judged  that  the  safest  and  best  conveyance.  If  both 
these  appointments  should  succeed,  we  trust  that,  with  the 
blessing  of  Heaven,  the  Church  of  England  will  yet  flourish 
in  this  western  hemisphere. 

With  sincerest  wishes  for  your  Grace's  health  and  happi- 
ness, that  you  may  long  continue  an  ornament  and  blessing 
to  the  Church  over  which  you  preside,  and  with  the  most 
perfect  respect  and  esteem,  we  have  the  honor  to  be  your 
Grace's  most  dutiful  sons  and  obedient,  humble  servants. 

The  foregoing  letter  was  printed  without  signature 
in  "  The  Churchman's  Magazine"  for  February,  1807. 


96  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

It  bears  internal  and  unmistakable  evidence  of  hav- 
ing proceeded  from  the  same  clergymen  who  signed 
the  letter  to  the  Archbishop  of  York,  of  even  date. 
A  letter  was  also  written  by  the  clergy  of  Connecticut 
in  convention  assembled,  imploring  the  venerable  So- 
ciety to  continue  the  stipends  to  its  missionaries,  and 
urging  this  support  as  necessary  in  the  present  emer- 
gency, but  with  how  little  success  will  be  seen  here- 
after. Taking  these  letters  and  others  that  might  be 
of  service  to  him,  Dr.  Seabury  departed  for  England 
in  the  flag-ship  of  Admiral  Digby,  and  many  prayers 
went  up  to  the  "  Eternal  God  who  alone  spreadeth 
out  the  heavens  and  ruleth  the  raging  of  the  sea," 
that  He  would  keep  him  under  his  protection,  and 
conduct  him  in  safety  to  the  end  of  his  journey. 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  97 


CHAPTER  VII. 

SCHEME  OF  THE  REV.  MR.  WHITE  AND  OPPOSITION  OP  THE  CLERGY 
OF  CONNECTICUT  ;  CONVENTION  IN  WOODBURY  AND  NUMBER  PRES- 
ENT ;  SYMPATHY  IN  MASSACHUSETTS,  AND  LETTERS  OF  REV.  MR. 
FOGG';  ARRIVAL  OF  DR.  SEABURY  IN  LONDON,  AND  IMPEDIMENTS 
TO  HIS  CONSECRATION  J  CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  THE  CLERGY,  AND 
CONVENTION  IN  WALLINGFORD. 

A.  D.  1783-1784. 

ONE  of  the  motives  which  influenced  the  clergy  of 
Connecticut  in  moving  so  early  after  the  acknowl- 
edgment of  independence  to  secure  a  bishop  in  this 
country  was  the  publication  of  a  pamphlet  in  Phila- 
delphia which  recommended  a  plan  of  a  very  extraor- 
dinary nature.  It  was  written  by  the  Rev.  William 
White,  afterwards  the  Bishop  of  Pennsylvania,  and 
issued  from  the  press  without  his  name,  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1782.  It  does  not  appear  to  have  reached 
the  Northern  States  until  peace  had  been  declared, 
but  it  was  circulated  in  the  region  which  gave  it 
birth  and  where  the  Episcopal  atmosphere  was  less 
impregnated  with  high  views  of  the  Christian  minis- 
try. According  to  the  interpretation  of  the  author, 
the  pamphlet  "  proposed  the  combining  of  the  clergy 
and  of  representatives  of  the  congregations,  in  con- 
venient districts,  with  a  representative  body  of  the 
whole,  nearly  on  the  plan  subsequently  adopted.  This 
ecclesiastical  representative  was  to  make  a  declara- 

7 


98  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

tion  approving  of  Episcopacy,  and  professing  a  deter- 
mination to  possess  the  succession  when  it  could  be 
obtained  ;  but  they  were  to  carry  the  plan  into  imme- 
diate act."  l 

To  this  scheme,  as  they  had  a  right  to  understand 
it,  the  Connecticut  clergy  were  decidedly  opposed. 
The  argument  from  necessity  did  not,  in  their  opin- 
ion, exist.  For  more  than  half  a  century  candidates 
from  the  colony  had  been  sent  three  thousand  miles 
to  obtain  Holy  Orders,  and  it  would  have  been  a  re- 
versal of  all  their  history,  and  all  their  teaching  and 
belief  in  regard  to  the  Church  of  Christ,  to  consent 
for  one  moment  to  the  main  proposition  of  the  pam- 
phlet. At  the  meeting,  therefore,  in  Woodbury,  the 
following  document,  addressed  to  Mr.  White,  was  pre- 
pared and  adopted  as  an  expression  of  their  views 
and  as  a  reason  for  the  steps  they  had  taken  to  se- 
cure a  bishop. 

REVEREND  SIR,  —  We,  the  clergy  of  Connecticut,  met  at 
Woodbury  in  voluntary  convention,  beg  leave  to  acquaint 
you  that  a  small  pamphlet,  printed  in  Philadelphia,  has  been 
transmitted  to  us,  of  which  you  are  said  to  be  the  author. 
This  pamphlet  proposes  a  new  form  of  government  in  the 
Episcopal  Church,  and  points  at  the  method  of  erecting  it. 
As  the  thirteen  States  have  now  risen  to  independent  sover- 
eignty, we  agree  with  you,  sir,  that  the  chain  which  con- 
nected this  with  the  mother  Church  is  broken  ;  that  the 
American  Church  is  now  left  to  stand  in  its  own  strength, 
and  that  some  change  in  its  regulations  must  in  due  time 
take  place.  But  we  think  it  premature  and  of  dangerous 
consequence,  to  enter  upon  so  capital  a  business,  till  we  have 
resident  bishops  (if  they  can  be  obtained)  to  assist  in  the 
performance  of  it,  and  to  form  a  new  union  in  the  Ameri- 
1  Memoirs  of  P.  E.  Church,  p.  91. 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  99 

can  Church,  under  proper  superiors,  since  its  union  is  now 
broken  with  such  superiors  in  the  British  Church.  We 
shall  only  advert  to  such  things  in  the  pamphlet  as  we  es- 
teem of  dangerous  consequence.  You  say  the  conduct  you 
mean  to  recommend  is  to  include  in  the  proposed  frame  of 
government  a  general  approbation  of  Episcopacy,  and  a 
declaration  of  an  intention  to  procure  the  succession  as  soon 
as  conveniently  may  be  ;  but  in  the  mean  time  to  carry  the 
plan  into  effect,  without  waiting  for  the  succession.  But 
why  do  you  include  a  general  approbation  of  Episcopacy  in 
your  proposed  new  frame  of  government  ?  not  because  you 
think  bishops  a  constituent  part  of  an  Episcopal  Church, 
unless  you  conceive  they  derive  their  office  and  existence 
from  the  king's  authority ;  for  though  you  acknowledge  we 
cannot  at  present  have  bishops  here,  and  propose  to  set  up 
without  them,  yet  you  say  no  constitutional  principle  of  our 
Church  is  changed  by  the  Revolution,  but  what  was  founded 
on  the  authority  of  the  king.  Your  motives  for  the  above 
general  approbation  seem,  indeed,  to  be  purely  political.  One 
is,  that  the  general  opinion  of  Episcopalians  is  in  favor  of 
bishops,  and  therefore  (if  we  understand  your  reasoning) 
it  would  be  impolitic  not  to  flatter  them  with  the  hopes  of 
it.  Another  reason  is,  that  too  wide  a  deviation  from  the 
British  Church  might  induce  future  emigrants  from  thence 
to  set  up  independent  churches  here.  But  could  you  have 
proposed  to  set  up  the  ministry,  without  waiting  for  the 
succession,  had  you  believed  the  Episcopal  superiority  to  be 
an  ordinance  of  Christ,  with  the  exclusive  authority  of  or- 
dination and  government,  and  that  it  has  ever  been  so  es- 
teemed in  the  purest  ages  of  the  Church  ?  and  yet  we  con- 
ceive this  to  be  the  sense  of  Episcopalians  in  general,  and 
warranted  by  the  constant  practice  of  the  Christian  Church. 
Really,  sir,  we  think  an  Episcopal  Church  without  Episco- 
pacy, if  it  be  not  a  contradiction  in  terms,  would,  however, 
be  a  new  thing  under  the  sun  ;  and  yet  the  Episcopal  Church, 
by  the  pamphlet  proposed  to  be  erected,  must  be  in  this 
predicament  till  the  succession  be  obtained.  You  plead 


100  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

necessity,  however,  and  argue  that  the  best  writers  in  the 
Church  admit  of  Presbyterian  ordination  where  Episcopal 
cannot  be  had.  To  prove  this,  you  quote  concessions  from 
the  venerable  Hooker,  and  Dr.  Chandler,  which  their  ex- 
uberant charity  to  the  reformed  churches  abroad  led  them 
to  make.  But  the  very  words  you  quote  from  the  last 
mentioned  gentleman  prove  his  opinion  to  be,  that  bishops 
were  as  truly  an  ordinance  of  Christ,  and  as  essential  to 
his  Church,  as  the  sacraments ;  for,  say  you,  he  insists  upon 
it  (meaning  the  Episcopal  superiority)  as  of  divine  right; 
asserts  that  the  laws  relating  to  it  bind  as  strongly  as  the 
laws  which  relate  to  baptism  and  the  holy  Eucharist,  and 
that  if  the  succession  be  once  broken,  not  all  the  men  on 
earth,  not  all  the  angels  in  heaven,  without  an  immediate 
commission  from  Christ,  can  restore  it ;  but  you  say  he  does 
not,  however,  hold  this  succession  to  be  necessary,  only  where 
it  can  be  had.  Neither  does  he  or  the  Christian  Church 
hold  the  sacraments  to  be  necessary,  where  they  cannot  be 
had  agreeable  to  the  appointment  of  the  Great  Head  of  the 
Church.  Why  should  particular  acts  of  authority  be  thought 
more  necessary  than  the  authority  itself  ?  Why  should  the 
sacraments  be  more  essential  than  that  authority  Christ  has 
ordained  to  administer  them  ?  It  is  true  that  Christ  has 
appointed  the  sacraments,  and  it  is  as  true  that  He  hath 
appointed  officers  to  administer  them,  and  has  expressly 
forbid  any  to  do  it  but  those  who  are  authorized  by  his  ap- 
pointment, or  called  of  God,  as  was  Aaron.  And  yet  these 
gentlemen  (without  any  inconsistency  with  their  declared 
sentiments)  have,  and  all  good  men  will  express  their  char- 
itable hopes,  that  God,  in  compassion  to  a  well-meant  zeal, 
will  add  the  same  blessings  to  those  who,  through  unavoida- 
ble mistake,  act  beside  his  commission  as  if  they  really  had 
it.  As  far  as  we  can  find,  it  has  been  the  constant  opinion  of 
our  Church  in  England  and  here,  that  the  Episcopal  superi- 
ority is  an  ordinance  of  Christ,  and  we  think  that  the  uni- 
form practice  of  the  whole  American  Church,  for  near  a  cen- 
tury, sending  their  candidates  three  thousand  miles  for  Holy 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  101 

Orders,  is  more  than  a  presumptive  proof  that  the  Church 
here  are,  and  ever  have  been,  of  this  opinion.  The  sectaries, 
soon  after  the  Reformation,  declared  that  the  book  of  conse- 
cration, etc.,  was  superstitious  and  contrary  to  God's  word, 
and  the  moderation  you  mention  in  the  articles  and  canons 
consists  in  affirming  that  this  declaration  was  entirely  false  ; 
and  would  you  wish  to  be  more  severe  ?  The  instances  you 
adduce,  wherein  Presbyterian  ordination  has  been  tolerated 
in  the  Church,  have,  by  its  best  writers,  been  set  in  such  a 
point  of  view  as  to  give  no  countenance  to  your  scheme,  and 
the  authorities  you  quote  have  been  answered  again  and 
again.  If  you  will  not  allow  this  superiority  to  have  an 
higher  origin  than  the  apostles ;  yet  since  they  were  divinely 
inspired,  we  see  not  why  their  practice  is  not  equal  to  a 
divine  warrant ;  and  as  they  have  given  no  liberty  to  devi- 
ate from  their  practice  in  any  exigence  of  the  church,  we 
know  not  what  authority  we  have  to  take  such  liberties  in 
any  case.  However,  we  think  nothing  can  be  more  clear, 
than  that  our  Church  has  ever  believed  bishops  to  have  the 
sole  right  of  ordination  and  government,  and  that  this  regi- 
men was  appointed  of  Christ  himself,  and  it  is  now,  to  use 
your  own  words,  humbly  submitted  to  consideration,  whether 
such  Episcopalians. as  consent  even  to  a  temporary  departure, 
and  set  aside  this  ordinance  of  Christ  for  conveniency,  can 
scarcely  deserve  the  name  of  Christians.  But  would  neces- 
sity warrant  a  deviation  from  the  law  of  Christ,  and  the  im- 
memorial practice  of  the  Church,  yet  what  necessity  have 
we  to  plead  ?  Can  we  plead  necessity  with  any  propriety, 
till  we  have  tried  to  obtain  an  Episcopate,  and  have  been 
rejected?  We  conceive  the  present  to  be  a  more  favorable 
opportunity  for  the  introduction  of  bishops  than  this  coun- 
try has  before  seen.  However  dangerous  bishops  formerly 
might  have  been  thought  to  the  civil  rights  of  these  States, 
this  danger  has  now  vanished,  for  such  superiors  will  have 
no  civil  authority.  They  will  be  purely  ecclesiastics.  The 
States  have  now  risen  to  sovereign  authority,  and  bishops 
will  be  equally  under  the  control  of  civil  law  with  other 


102  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

clergymen  ;  no  danger,  then,  can  now  be  feared  from  bishops, 
but  such  as  may  be  feared  from  presbyters.  This  being  the 
case,  have  we  not  the  highest  reason  to  hope,  that  the  whole 
civil  authority  upon  the  continent  (should  their  assistance 
be  needed)  will  unite  their  influence  with  the  Church,  to 
procure  an  office  so  essential  to  it,  and  to  render  complete 
a  profession,  which  contains  so  considerable  a  proportion  of 
its  inhabitants  ?  And  on  the  other  hand,  is  there  any  reason 
to  believe  that  all  the  bishops  in  England,  and  in  all  the 
other  reformed  Churches  in  Europe,  are  so  totally  lost  to  a 
sense  of  their  duty,  and  to  the  real  wants  of  their  brethren  in 
the  Episcopal  Church  here,  as  to  refuse  to  ordain  bishops  to 
preside  over  us,  when  a  proper  application  shall  be  made  to 
them  for  it  ?  If  this  cannot  be,  why  is  not  the  present  a 
favorable  opportunity  for  such  an  application  ?  Nothing  is 
further  from  the  design  of  this  letter  than  to  begin  a  dis- 
pute with  you  ;  but  in  a  frank  and  brotherly  way  to  express 
our  opinion  of  the  mistaken  and  dangerous  tendency  of  the 
pamphlet.  We  fear,  should  the  scheme  of  it  be  carried  into 
execution  in  the  Southern  States,  it  will  create  divisions  in 
the  Church  at  a  time  when  its  whole  strength  depends  upon 
its  unity ;  for  we  know  it  is  totally  abhorrent  from  the 
principles  of  the  Church  in  the  Northern  States,  and  are 
fully  convinced  they  will  never  submit  to  it.  And  indeed 
should  we  consent  to  a  temporary  departure  from  Episco- 
pacy, there  would  be  very  little  propriety  in  asking  for  it 
afterwards,  and  as  little  reason  ever  to  expect  it  in  America. 
Let  us  all  then  unite  as  one  man  to  improve  this  favorable 
opportunity,  to  procure  an  object  so  desirable  and  so  essen- 
tial to  the  Church. 

We  are,  dear  sir,  your  affectionate  brethren,  the  clergy 
of  Connecticut. 

Signed  by  order  of  the  Convention, 

ABRAHAM  JARVIS,  Secretary. 

WOODBURY,  March  25,  1783. 

An  answer  to   this   communication   was   duly   re- 


OF    SAMUEL   SEABURY.  103 

turned,  but  when  it  was  received  in  July,  1783,  such 
had  been  the  change  of  circumstances  since  the  pam- 
phlet was  published,  that  Mr.  White  no  longer  de- 
fended his  proposed  scheme.1  He  asked  for  the  in- 
dulgence of  his  Connecticut  brethren  on  the  ground 
of  a  supposed  necessity,  which,  he  now  admitted, 
had  ceased  to  exist.  He  affirmed  that  he  had  been 
misunderstood,  but  "  no  personal  animosity,"  said 
he,  "  became  the  result  of  this  misapprehension,  and 
other  events  have  manifested  consent  in  all  matters 
essential  to  ecclesiastical  discipline."  Some  twenty- 
five  years  later  the  use  made  of  statements  in  the 
pamphlet  by  a  writer  controverting  Episcopacy  in 
a  secular  newspaper2  led  the  author  to  write  two  or 
three  letters  to  that  publication  for  the  purpose  of 
counteracting  the  mischievous  effects  which  an  incor- 
rect citation  was  likely  to  produce. 

Other  clergymen  in  New  England  besides  those 
from  Connecticut  were  interested  in  the  proceedings 
at  Woodbury.  The  Kev.  Samuel  Parker,  of  Boston 
(afterwards  Bishop  of  Massachusetts,  who  died  before 
performing  a  single  Episcopal  act),  appears  to  have 
put  himself  in  communication  with  the  Rev.  Daniel 
Fogg,  one  of  the  ten  clergymen  who  composed  the 
voluntary  convention,  and  the  brief  letters  which 
passed  between  them,  especially  those  of  Mr.  Fogg, 
shed  some  light  upon  that  important  gathering.  The 
following  was  the  second  of  these  letters,  the  first 
having  given  no  particulars :  — 

POMFRET,  July  14,  1783. 

DEAR  SIR,  —  I  wrote  you  a  few  lines  the  2d  instant  by 
an  uncertain  conveyance,  in  which  I  mentioned  that  the 

i  Memoirs  of  P.  E.  Church,  pp.  282-286.  2  Albany  Centinel. 


104  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

Connecticut  clergy  had  done  all  in  their  power  respecting 
the  matter  you  were  anxious  about ;  but  they  keep  it  a  pro- 
found secret,  even  from  their  most  intimate  friends  of  the 
laity. 

The  matter  is  this  :  After  consulting  the  clergy  in  New 
York  how  to  keep  up  the  succession,  they  unanimously 
agreed  to  send  a  person  to  England  to  be  consecrated 
Bishop  for  America,  and  pitched  upon  Dr.  Seabury  as  the 
most  proper  person  for  this  purpose,  who  sailed  for  England 
the  beginning  of  last  month,  highly  recommended  by  all  the 
clergy  in  New  York  and  Connecticut,  etc.  If  he  succeeds, 
he  is  to  come  out  as  missionary  for  New  London  or  some 
other  vacant  mission,  and  if  they  will  not  receive  him  in 
Connecticut,  or  any  other  of  the  States  of  America,  he  is  to 
go  to  Nova  Scotia.  Sir  Guy  highly  approves  of  the  plan, 
and  has  used  all  his  influence  in  favor  of  it. 

The  clergy  have  even  gone  so  far  as  to  instruct  Dr.  Sea- 
bury,  if  none  of  the  regular  bishops  of  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land will  ordain  him,  to  go  down  to  Scotland  and  receive 
ordination  from  a  nonjuring  bishop.  Please  to  let  me  know 
by  Mr.  Grosvenor  how  you  approve  of  the  plan,  and  whether 
you  have  received  any  late  accounts  from  England. 

From  your  affectionate  brother,  D.  FOGG.1 

Mr.  Parker  accepted,  in  general,  the  action  of  the 
clergy  of  Connecticut,  and  only  raised  one  or  two 
objections,  which  had  been  thought  of  and  met.  He 
was  a  prominent  and  influential  presbyter  in  Massa- 
chusetts, and  deeply  solicitous  for  the  proper  organi- 
zation and  establishment  of  the  Church  in  this  coun- 
try. It  was  natural  for  him  to  turn  to  Connecticut, 
one  of  the  New  England  States,  where  the  battle  for 
Episcopacy  had  been  early  and  well  fought,  and 
where  men  understood  and  were  prepared  to  assert 
its  claims.  Another  letter  from  Mr.  Fogg  gave  ex- 

1  Church  Documents,  Connecticut,  pp.  212,  213. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  105 

planatory  reasons  in  support  of  the  action  at  Wood- 
bury,  and  indicated  to  Mr.  Parker  that  he  and  his 
brethren  would  not  be  compelled  to  come  under  the 
jurisdiction  of  Dr.  Seabury,  if  he  succeeded  in  ob- 
taining Episcopal  consecration.  This  appears  to  have 
closed  the  correspondence  on  the  subject. 

DEAR  SIK,  —  I  am  very  glad  that  the  conduct  of  the  Con- 
necticut clergy  meets  with  your  approbation  in  the  main. 
Dr.  Seabury's  being  a  refugee  was  an  objection  which  I 
made,  but  was  answered,  they  could  not  fix  upon  any  other 
person  who  they  thought  was  so  likely  to  succeed  as  he  was, 
and  should  he  succeed  and  not  be  permitted  to  reside  in  any 
of  the  United  States,  it  would  be  an  easy  matter  for  any 
other  gentleman  who  was  not  obnoxious  to  the  powers  that 
be,  to  be  consecrated  by  him  at  Halifax.  And  as  to  the  ob- 
jection of  not  consulting  the  clergy  of  the  other  States,  the 
time  would  not  allow  of  it,  and  there  was  nobody  to  consult 
in  the  State  of  New  York,  for  there  is  not  one  clergyman 
there  except  refugees,  and  they  were  consulted.  And  in  the 
State  of  Connecticut  there  are  fourteen  clergymen.  And  in 
your  State  and  New  Hampshire,  you  know  how  many  there 
are,  and  you  know  there  is  no  compulsion  in  the  matter,  and 
you  will  be  left  to  act  as  you  please,  either  to  be  subject  to 
him  or  not.  As  to  the  matter  of  his  support,  that  must  be 
an  after  consideration. 

Your  affectionate  friend  and  brother,  D.  FOGG. 

POMFRET,  August  1,  1783. 

Dr.  Seabury  arrived  in  London  on  the  7th  of  July, 
and  entered  earnestly  upon  the  business  of  his  mis- 
sion. He  found  that  the  dismemberment  of  the  colo- 
nies and  the  acknowledgment  of  their  independence 
had  not  removed  the  obstacles  hitherto  thrown  in  the 
way  of  an  American  Episcopate.  The  old  policy  of 
preferring  political  expediency  to  religious  right  still 


106  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

paralyzed  the  energies  of  the  Church  of  England,  and 
diminished  the  fervency  of  her  zeal  and  the  extent  of 
her  charity.  The  bishops  differed  somewhat  in  their 
views,  and  while  they  sympathized  with  the  plan  and 
hoped  for  its  success,  they  all  saw  impediments  that 
hindered  them  from  proceeding  to  consecrate.  The 
dispensation  of  the  king,  or,  yet  more,  an  act  of  Par- 
liament, they  thought,  was  necessary  to  justify  "  the 
omission  of  the  state  oaths  in  the  ordination  offices," 
and  Dr.  Seabury,  therefore,  was  at  once  convinced 
that  he  could  not  soon  return  to  America  if  he  waited 
for  the  boon  which  he  was  then  seeking  from  the 
Church  of  England.  His  first  letter  to  the  clergy  of 
Connecticut  after  his  arrival  let  them  into  the  spirit 
with  which  his  application  was  met,  and  was  dated 

LONDON,  July  15,  1783. 

GENTLEMEN,  —  In  prosecution  of  the  business  committed 
to  me  by  you,  I  arrived  in  this  city  on  the  7th  inst.  Unfort- 
unately the  Archbishop  of  York  had  left  this  city  a  fort- 
night before,  so  that  I  was  deprived  of  his  advice  and  patron- 
age. I  waited  on  the  Bishop  of  London  and  met  with  a 
cordial  reception  from  him.  He  heartily  approved  of  the 
scheme,  and  wished  success  to  it,  and  declared  his  readiness 
to  concur  with  the  two  Archbishops  in  carrying  it  into  exe- 
cution :  but  I  soon  found  he  was  not  disposed  to  take  the  lead 
in  the  matter.  He  mentioned  the  State  Oaths  in  the  Ordi- 
nation offices,  as  impediments,  but  supposed  that  the 'King's 
dispensation  would  be  a  sufficient  warrant  for  the  Archbish- 
ops to  proceed  upon.  But  upon  conversing  with  His  Grace 
of  Canterbury,  I  found  his  opinion  rather  different  from  the 
.Bishop  of  London.  He  received  me  politely,  approved  of  the 
measure,  saw  the  necessity  of  it,  and  would  do  all  he  could 
to  carry  it  into  execution.  But  he  must  proceed  openly  and 
with  candor.  His  Majesty's  dispensation  he  feared  would 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  107 

not  be  sufficient  to  justify  the.  omission  of  oaths  imposed  by 
act  of  Parliament.  He  would  consult  the  other  bishops ; 
he  would  advise  with  those  persons  on  whose  judgment  he 
thought  he  could  depend.  He  was  glad  to  hear  the  opinion 
of  the  Bishop  of  London,  and  wished  to  know  the  sentiments 
of  the  Archbishop  of  York.  He  foresaw  great  difficulties,  but 
hoped  there  were  none  of  them  insurmountable.  I  purpose 
to  set  out  for  York  in  a  few  days  to  consult  the  Archbishop, 
and  will  do  everything  in  my  power  to  carry  this  matter  into 
a  happy  issue ;  but  it  will  require  a  great  deal  of  time,  and 
patience,  and  attention.  I  endeavored  to  remove  those  diffi- 
culties that  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  mentioned.  And 
I  am  not  without  hopes  that  they  will  all  be  got  over.  My 
greatest  fear  arises  from  the  matter  becoming  public,  as  it 
now  must,  and  that  the  Dissenters  here  will  prevail  on  your 
government  to  apply  against  it:  this  I  think  would  effect- 
ually crush  it,  at  least  as  far  as  it  relates  to  Connecticut. 
You  will  therefore  do  well  to  attend  to  this  circumstance 
yourselves,  and  get  such  of  your  friends  as  you  can  trust,  to 
find  out,  should  any  such  intelligence  come  from  hence.  In 
that  case,  I  think  it  would  be  best  to  avow  your  design,  and 
try  what  strength  you  can  muster  in  the  Assembly  to  sup- 
port it.  But  in  this  matter  your  own  judgment  will  be  a 
much  better  guide  to  you  than  any  opinion  of  mine. 

I  will  again  write  to  you  on  my  return  from  York,  and 
shall  then  be  able  to  tell  you  more  precisely  what  is  like  to 
be  the  success  of  this  business. 

I  am,  reverend  gentlemen,  with  the  greatest  respect  and 
esteem,  your  most  obliged  humble  servant, 

SAMUEL  SEABURY. 

Nearly  a  month  passed  away  before  he  wrote 
again  to  the  clergy  of  Connecticut  and  detailed  the 
difficulties  which  embarrassed  the  action  of  the  Eng- 
lish bishops.  To  us  who  look  back  upon  their  course 
from  this  point  of  time,  and  in  the  light  of  later  his- 


108  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

tory,  it  seems  strange  that  they  should  have  felt 
themselves  to  be  so  hampered  by  political  considera- 
tions as  not  to  venture  upon  a  spiritual  act  which 
was  intended  to  preserve  the  existence  of  the  Epis- 
copal Church  in  America.  They  could  not  separate 
their  office  from  the  circumstances  by  which  they 
were  surrounded,  and  though  in  apostolic  days  there 
was  no  waiting  for  the  consent  of  the  Roman  govern- 
ment, they  gravely  made  it  an  impediment  to  the 
consecration  of  Dr.  Seabury,  that  "  it  would  be  send- 
ing a  bishop  to  Connecticut,  which  they  had  no  right 
to  do  without  the  consent  of  the  State."  But  read 
his  second  letter  to  the  clergy :  — 

LONDON,  August  10,  1783. 

REVEEEND  GENTLEMEN,  —  In  the  letter  which  I  wrote  to 
you  after  my  interview  with  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
I  informed  you  of  the  objections  made,  and  difficulties  men- 
tioned by  him,  with  regard  to  the  business  on  which  I  came 
to  England.  I  also  informed  you  of  my  intention  to  take  a 
journey  to  York  that  I  might  have  the  full  benefit  of  his 
Grace  of  York's  advice  and  influence.  This  journey  I  have 
accomplished,  and  I  fear  to  very  little  purpose.  His  Grace 
is  now  carrying  on  a  correspondence  with  the  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury,  on  the  subject ;  what  the  issue  will  be  is  not 
certain ;  but  I  think,  unless  matters  can  be  put  on  a  differ- 
ent footing,  the  business  will  not  succeed.  Both  the  Arch- 
bishops are  convinced  of  the  necessity  of  supplying  the 
States  of  America  with  Bishops,  if  it  be  intended  to  preserve 
the  Episcopal  Church  there ;  and  they  even  seem  sensible  of 
the  justice  of  the  present  application,  but  they  are  exceed- 
ingly embarrassed  by  the  following  difficulties  : 

1.  That   it  would   be   sending  a  bishop  to  Connecticut, 
which  they  have  no  right  to  do  without  the  consent  of  the 
State. 

2.  That  the  bishop  would  not  be  received  in  Connecticut. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  109 

3.  That  there  would  be  no  adequate  support  for  him. 

4.  That  the  oaths  in  the  ordination  office  cannot  be  got 
over,  because  the  king's  dispensation  would  not  be  sufficient 
to  justify  the  omission  of  those  oaths.     At  least  there  must 
be  the  concurrence  of  the  king's  council  to  the  omission ; 
and  that  the  council  would  not  give  their  concurrence  with- 
out the  permission  of  the  State  of  Connecticut  to  the  bishop's 
residing  among  them. 

All  that  I  could  say  had  no  effect,  and  I  had  a  fair  oppor- 
tunity of  saying  all  that  I  wished  to  say. 

It  now  remains  to  be  considered  what  method  shall  be 
taken  to  obtain  the  wished-for  Episcopate. 

The  matter  here  will  become  public.  It  will  soon  get  to 
Connecticut.  Had  you  not,  gentlemen,  better  make  imme- 
diate application  to  the  State  for  permission  to  have  a 
bishop  to  reside  there  ?  Should  you  not  succeed,  you  lose 
nothing,  as  I  am  pretty  confident  you  will  not  succeed  here 
without  such  consent.  Should  there  be  anything  personal 
with  regard  to  me,  let  it  not  retard  the  matter.  I  will  most 
readily  give  up  my  pretensions  to  any  person  who  shall  be 
agreeable  to  you,  and  less  exceptionable  to  the  State. 

You  can  make  the  attempt  with  all  the  strength  you  can 
muster  among  the  laity :  and  at  the  same  time  I  would  ad- 
vise that  some  persons  be  sent  to  try  the  State  of  Vermont 
on  this  subject.  In  the  mean  time  I  will  try  to  prepare  and 
get  things  in  a  proper  train  here.  I  think  I  shall  be  able  to 
get  at  the  Duke  of  Portland  and  Lord  North,  on  the  occa- 
sion. And  should  you  succeed  in  either  instance,  I  think  all 
difficulty  would  be  at  an  end. 

I  am,  worthy  gentlemen,  with  the  greatest  respect  and 
esteem,  your  much  obliged  and  very  humble  brother  and 
servant,  SAMUEL  SEABURY. 

By  tbis  time  Mr.  Learning,  whom  Dr.  Seabury  left 
in  New  York  when  he  sailed  for  England,  had  re- 
turned to  Connecticut  and  was  assisting  the  clergy  in 
shaping  their  movements  and  conducting  their  cor- 


110  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

respondence  with  reference  to  the  Episcopacy.  At 
Easter,  1784,  he  was  chosen  rector  of  the  venerable 
parish  in  Stratford,  the  oldest  in  the  State,  which  Dr. 
Johnson  served  for  about  forty  years,  and  where  he, 
as  one  of  his  successors,  faithfully  ministered  until 
1790.  The  letter  to  him  which  follows  is  more 
frank  than  any  written  to  the  other  clergymen,  and 
breathes  with  affectionate  remembrances  of  former 
days. 

LONDON,  September  3,  1783.  | 
No.  91  WARDOUR  STREET.  ^ 

MY  DEAR  SIB,  —  Though  I  have  so  lately  written  to  you, 
as  well  as  to  the  clergy  of  Connecticut,  explaining  the  sit- 
uation of  the  business  on  which  I  came  to  England;  yet  I 
must  more  fully  open  my  mind  to  you,  and  you  are  to  be 
the  judge,  whether  any,  and  how  much  of  this  letter  is  to 
be  shewed  to  any  one  else. 

With  regard  to  my  success,  I  not  only  think  it  doubtful, 
but  that  the  probability  is  against  it.  Nobody  here  will 
risk  anything  for  the  sake  of  the  Church,  or  for  the  sake  of 
continuing  Episcopal  ordination  in  America.  Unless  there- 
fore it  can  be  made  a  ministerial  affair,  none  of  the  bishops 
will  proceed  in  it  for  fear  of  clamor ;  and  indeed  the  ground 
on  which  they  at  present  stand,  seems  to  me  so  uncertain, 
that  I  believe  they  are  obliged  to  take  great  care  with  re- 
gard to  any  step  they  take  out  of  the  common  road.  They 
are  apprehensive  that  my  consecration  would  be  looked  on  in 
the  light  of  sending  a  bishop  to  Connecticut,  and  that  the 
State  of  Connecticut  would  resist  it,  and  that  they  should  be 
censured  as  meddlers  in  matters  that  do  not  concern  them. 
This  is  the  great  reason  why  I  wish  that  the  State  of  Con- 
necticut should  be  applied  to  for  their  consent.  Without  it, 
I  think  nothing  will  be  done.  If  they  refuse,  the  whole 
matter  is  at  an  end.  If  they  consent  that  a  bishop  should 
reside  among  them,  the  grand  obstacle  will  be  removed. 
You  see  the  necessity  of  making  the  attempt,  and  of  making 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  Ill 

it  with  vigor.  One  reason,  indeed,  why  I  wished  the  at- 
tempt to  be  made  in  Connecticut,  relates  to  myself.  I  can- 
not continue  here  long :  necessity  will  oblige  me  to  leave  it 
in  March  or  April,  at  furthest.  If  this  business  fails,  I  must 
try  to  get  some  provision  made  for  myself:  and  indeed  the 
State  of  Connecticut  may  consent  that  a  bishop  should  reside 
among  them,  though  they  might  not  consent  that  I  should 
be  the  man.  In  that  case,  the  sooner  I  shall  know  it  the 
better :  and  should  that  be  the  case,  I  beg  that  no  clergy- 
man in  Connecticut  will  hesitate  a  moment  on  my  account. 
The  point  is,  to  get  the  Episcopal  authority  into  that  coun- 
try ;  and  he  shall  have  every  assistance  in  my  power. 

Something  should  also  be  said  about  the  means  of  support 
for  a  bishop  in  that  country.  The  bishops  here  are  appre- 
hensive that  the  character  will  sink  into  contempt,  unless 
there  be  some  competent  and  permanent  fund  for  its  sup- 
port. Please  let  your  opinion  of  what  ought  to  be  said  on 
that  subject  be  communicated  by  the  first  opportunity,  that 
is,  provided  you  think  anything  can  be  done  in  Connec- 
ticut. 

Dr.  Chandler's  appointment  to  Nova  Scotia  will,  I  believe, 
succeed.  And  possibly  he  may  go  thither  this  autumn,  or, 
at  least,  early  in  the  spring.  But  his  success  will  do  no  good 
in  the  States  of  America.  His  hands  will  be  as  much  tied 
as  the  bishops  in  England  ;  and  I  think  he  will  run  no  risks 
to  communicate  the  Episcopal  powers.  There  is,  therefore, 
everything  depending  on  the  success  of  the  application  to 
the  State  of  Connecticut.  It  must  be  made  quickly,  lest 
the  dissenters  here  should  interpose  and  prevent  it ;  and  it 
should  be  made  with  the  united  efforts  of  clergy  and  laity, 
that  its  weight  may  be  the  greater ;  and  its  issue  you  must 
make  me  acquainted  with  as  soon  as  you  can.  Please  to 
send  me  one  or  two  more  testimonials  from  the  copy  which 
Dr.  Inglis  has.  Mr.  Moore  and  Mr.  Odell  will  assist  in 
copying  and  getting  them  signed ;  and  I  may  want  them. 

By  Captain  Cowper  I  expect  to  be  able  to  acquaint  you 
with  the  result  of  the  interview  of  the  two  archbishops  in 


112  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

my  business.  In  the  mean  time,  may  God  direct  and  pros- 
per all  the  endeavors  of  his  faithful  servants,  to  the  estab- 
lishment of  his  true  religion  in  the  western  world.  Adieu, 
friend  of  my  heart !  May  I  see  thee  again  in  peace  !  May 
I  again  enjoy  the  pleasure  of  thy  converse,  and  with  thee  be 
instrumental  in  promoting  the  welfare  of  Christ's  kingdom. 
Adieu  !  says  thy  ever  affectionate,  S.  SEABURY. 

Let  application  be  made  also  to  the  State  of  Vermont,  lest 
that  to  Connecticut  should  fail. 

The  clergy  of  Connecticut  assembled  in  convention 
at  Wallingford  on  the  13th  of  January,  1784,  when 
the  Kev.  Mr.  Learning  was  chosen  president  and  Mr. 
Jar  vis  secretary.  The  object  of  the  meeting  was  to 
take  into  consideration  the  suggestions  of  the  forego- 
ing letter,  and  on  the  14th  it  was  "voted  that  Mr. 
Learning,  Mr.  Hubbard,  and  Mr.  Jarvis  be  a  commit- 
tee to  collect  the  opinions  of  the  leading  members  of 
the  Assembly  concerning  an  application  by  the  clergy 
of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  Connecticut  for  the  legal 
protection  of  a  bishop  for  said  Church,  when  they 
shall  be  able  to  procure  one  agreeable  to  the  common 
rights  of  Christians,  as  those  rights  are  now  claimed 
and  understood  by  all  denominations  of  Christians  in 
the  State."  The  duty  imposed  upon  these  gentle- 
men was  promptly  discharged,  and  the  results  com- 
municated to  Dr.  Seabury  in  the  following  letter, 
under  date  of  Middle  town,  February  5,  1784  :  — 

REVEREND  AND  DEAR,  SIR,  —  Since  the  receipt  of  your 
letters,  addressed  to  the  clergy  in  Connecticut,  we  have,  by 
your  letter  to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Learning,  a  more  explicit  infor- 
mation of  the  difficulties  suggested  by  the  bishops  in  Eng- 
land, and  which  appear  to  operate  upon  their  minds,  against 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  113 

complying  with  our  petition,  and  to  their  giving  you  Episco- 
pal consecration. 

The  clergy  were  immediately  made  acquainted  with  what 
you  had  written,  and  shortly  after  met  at  Wallingford.  In 
convention  it  was  voted  that  the  leading  members  of  both 
Houses  of  Assembly,  which  was  then  sitting  at  New  Haven, 
should  be  conferred  with,  so  far  as  the  proposed  difficulties 
had  reference  to  the  civil  government.  We  the  subscribers 
were  appointed  a  committee  of  convention  for  the  above 
purpose,  and,  as  a  conventional  answer  to  your  letters,  com- 
municate to  you  the  result  of  that  conference,  together  with 
our  opinion,  and  what  we  could  do,  to  obviate  the  objections 
made  by  the  bishops.  Mr.  Learning  and  Mr.  Hubbard  con- 
versed freely  and  fully  with  a  number  of  principal  members 
of  both  Houses  of  Assembly,  and  collected  their  sentiments 
on  the  subject.  They  met  with  a  degree  of  attention  and 
candor  beyond  our  expectation ;  and  in  respect  of  the  need, 
the  propriety,  or  the  prudence  of  an  application  to  govern- 
ment for  the  admission  of  a  bishop  into  the  State,  their  opin- 
ions appeared  fully  to  coincide  with  our  own. 

Your  right,  they  said,  is  unquestionable.  You  therefore 
have  our  full  concurrence  for  your  enjoyment  of  what  you 
judge  essential  to  your  Church.  Was  an  act  of  Assembly 
expedient  to  your  complete  enjoyment  of  your  own  ecclesi- 
astical constitution,  we  would  freely  give  our  vote  for  such 
an  act.  We  have  passed  a  law  which  embraces  your  Church, 
wherein  are  comprehended  all  the  legal  rights  and  powers, 
intended  by  our  Constitution  to  be  given  to  any  denomi- 
nation of  Christians.  In  that  act  is  included  all  that  you 
want.  Let  a  bishop  come ;  by  that  act,  he  will  stand 
upon  the  same  ground  that  the  rest  of  the  clergy  do,  or  the 
Church  at  large.  It  was  remarked  that  there  were  some, 
who  would  oppose  and  would  labor  to  excite  opposition 
among  the  people,  who,  if  unalarmed  by  any  jealousies, 
will  probably  remain  quiet.  For  which  reason  it  would  be 
impolicy,  both  in  us  and  them,  for  the  Assembly  to  meddle 
at  all  with  the  business.  The  introduction  of  a  bishop  on 
8 


114  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

the  present  footing,  without  anything  more,  in  their  opinion 
would  be  the  easiest  and  securest  way  in  which  it  could  be 
done,  and  we  might  be  sure  of  his  protection.  This  they 
thought  must  be  enough  to  satisfy  the  bishops,  and  all  con- 
cerned in  the  affair  in  England.  We  are  further  authorized 
to  say  that  the  legislature  of  the  State  would  be  so  far  from 
taking  umbrage,  that  the  more  liberal  part  will  consider  the 
bishops  in  this  transaction  as  maintaining  entire  consistency 
of  principle  and  character,  and  by  so  doing  merit  their  com- 
mendation. 

The  act  above  alluded  to,  you  will  receive  inclosed  in  a 
letter  from  Mr.  Learning,  attested  by  the  clerk  of  the  lower 
House  of  Assembly.  It  is  not  yet  published.  The  clerk 
was  so  obliging  as  to  copy  it  from  the  journals  of  the  House. 
You  were  mentioned  as  the  gentleman  we  had  pitched  upon. 
The  secretary  of  the  state,  from  personal  knowledge,  and 
others,  said  things  honorable  and  benevolent  towards  you. 
Now  if  the  opinion  of  the  governor  and  other  members  of 
the  council,  explicitly  given  in  entire  agreement  with  the 
most  respectable  members  among  the  representatives,  who 
must  be  admitted  to  be  competent  judges  of  their  own  civil 
polity,  is  reasonably  sufficient  to  remove  all  scruples  about 
the  concurrence  of  the  legislature,  we  cannot  imagine  that 
objection  will  any  longer  have  a  place  in  the  minds  of  the 
archbishops.  We  here  understand,  as  we  suppose,  the  part 
which  the  government  established  among  us,  means  to  take 
in  respect  of  religion  in  general,  and  the  protection  it  will 
afford  to  the  different  denominations  of  Christians  under 
which  the  subjects  of  it  are  classed :  and  the  lowest  construc- 
tion, which  is  all  we  expect,  must  amount  to  a  permission 
that  the  Episcopal  Church  enjoy  all  the  requisites  of  her 
polity,  and  have  a  bishop  to  reside  among  them.  We  feel 
ourselves  at  some  loss  for  a  reply  to  the  objection  which  re- 
lates to  the  limits  and  establishment  of  a  diocese,  because 
the  government  here  is  not  Episcopal ;  and  because  we  do 
conceive  a  civil  or  legal  limitation  and  establishment  of  a 
diocese,  essentially  attached  to  the  doctrine  of  Episcopacy, 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  115 

or  the  existence  of  a  Bishop  in  the  Church.  The  Presbyters 
who  elect  the  Bishop,  and  the  congregations  to  which  they 
minister,  may  naturally  direct  his  active  superintendence, 
and  prescribe  the  acknowledged  boundaries  of  his  diocese. 

Under  existing  circumstances,  and  utterly  unable  to  judge 
with  any  certainty  what,  in  the  course  of  divine  providence, 
may  be  the  future  condition  of  the  Church  in  this  country, 
we  can  contemplate  no  other  support  for  a  Bishop,  than 
what  is  to  be  derived  from  voluntary  contracts,  and  sub- 
scriptions and  contributions,  directed  by  the  good  will  and 
zeal  of  the  members  of  a  Church  who  are  taught,  and  do  be- 
lieve, that  a  Bishop  is  the  chief  minister  in  the  kingdom  of 
Christ  on  earth.  Other  engagements,  it  is  not  in  our  power 
to  enter  into,  than  our  best  endeavors  to  obtain  what  our 
people  can  do,  and  we  trust  will  continue  to  do,  in  propor- 
tion to  the  increase  of  their  ability,  of  which  we  flatter  our- 
selves with  some  favorable  prospect.  ^A  Bishop  in  Connecti- 
cut must,  in  some  degree,  be  of  the  primitive  style.  With 
patience  and  a  share  of  primitive  zeal,  he  must  rest  for  sup- 
port on  the  Church  which  he  serves,  as  head  in  her  minis- 
trations, unornamented  with  temporal  dignity,  and  without 
the  props  of  secular  power. 

An  Episcopate  of  this  plain  and  simple  character,  amid 
the  doubts  and  uncertainties  which  at  present  in  a  measure 
pervade  everything,  we  hope  may  pass  unenvied,  and  its 
sacred  functions  be  performed  unobstructed.  Should  what 
we  have  now  written  be  thought  sufficient  to  do  away  the 
objections  which  have  been  advanced,  as  a  bar  to  your  con- 
secration :  yet  if  you  cannot  find  yourself  disposed  to  come 
to  us  under  these  circumstances,  painful  necessity  must  com- 
pel us  to  wait  patiently,  until  divine  providence  shall  open  a 
door  propitious  to  our  wants.  But  in  the  mean  time,  with 
the  help  of  God,  we  will  not  remit  in  our  endeavors  to  per- 
severe, and,  as  far  as  in  us  lies,  cherish  this  remnant  of  his 
Church. 

We  herewith  transmit  to  you  two  copies  of  our  letter,  and 
two  of  the  general  testimonial,  attested  by  the  Secretary. 


116  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

Continuing  fervently  desirous  of  your  success  ;  and  with  our 
best  wishes  for  your  personal  health  and  prosperity ;  we  are, 
in  behalf  of  convention,  your  affectionate  brethren, 

JEREMIAH  LEAMING. 

ABRAHAM  JARYIS. 

BELA  HUBBARD. 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  117 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

SETTLEMENT  OF  HIS  FAMILY  IN  NEW  LONDON  AND  LETTERS  TO  THE 
CLERGY  OF  CONNECTICUT  ;  SCOTTISH  EPISCOPACY  AND  DR.  BERKE- 
LEY'S CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  BISHOP  SKINNER  ;  WAITING  FOR  AN 
ACT  OF  PARLIAMENT  AND  NOTHING  ACCOMPLISHED  FOR  HIS  AID  ; 
THE  DANISH  SUCCESSION  AND  CARTWRIGHT  OF  SHREWSBURY  ;  AP- 
PLICATION TO  THE  SCOTTISH  BISHOPS. 

A.    D.    1784. 

THE  letter  which  closed  the  previous  chapter  raised 
the  clergy  of  Connecticut  in  the  estimation  of  the 
English  bishops,  but  did  not  satisfy  them  that  the 
way  was  yet  clear  for  their  action.  It  was  now 
twelve  months  since  Dr.  Seabury  had  left  America, 
and  he  was  becoming  impatient  of  the  delays  to 
which  he  was  constantly  subjected.  His  family  —  his 
wife  died  September,  1780  —  had  been  settled  in  New 
London,  and  he  was  anxious  to  complete  his  mission 
and  return  and  take  them  again  under  his  personal 
care  and  protection.  He  worked  vigorously  and  used 
every  argument  in  his  power  to  overcome  the  objec- 
tions to  his  consecration.  He  admired  the  frankness 
of  the  English  bishops  in  stating  their  reasons  for 
not  proceeding  to  comply  with  his  request ;  but  he 
was  as  little  able  to  see  their  force  as  they  were  to 
comprehend  the  feelings  and  the  political  and  relig- 
ious situation  of  the  people  in  this  country.  Every- 
thing, both  encouraging  and  discouraging,  was  com- 


118  LIFE  AND.  CORRESPONDENCE 

municated  to  his  friends  in  Connecticut,  and  they 
promptly  sent  back  all  the  information  that  might  be 
needed  to  help  him  in  the  accomplishment  of  his  ob- 
ject. The  two  letters  which  follow,  one  written  to 
the  Committee  of  the  Convention  at  Wallingford,  and 
the  other  to  Mr.  Jarvis,  show  his  activity  and  contain 
the  history  of  his  movements. 

LONDON,  April  30,  1784. 

GENTLEMEN,  —  Your  letter  dated  at  Middletown,  Feb.  5, 
with  the  papers  that  accompanied  it,  came  duly  to  me  by 
the  packet.  I  also  received  a  letter  from  Mr.  Learning,  but 
no  copy  of  the  act  of  the  legislature  to  which  in  your  letter 
you  refer.  I  hope  it  is  on  the  way. 

I  have  communicated  your  letter  to  the  Archbishop  of 
York,  and  the  Bishops  of  London  and  Oxford ;  the  last  did 
not  seem  to  think  it  quite  satisfactory,  but  said  the  letter 
was  a  good  one,  and  gave  him  an  advantageous  opinion  of 
the  gentlemen  who  wrote  it,  and  of  the  Clergy  of  Connecti- 
cut in  general ;  and  that  it  was  worthy  of  serious  considera- 
tion. The  Bishop  of  London  thought  it  removed  all  the 
difficulties  on  your  side  of  the  water,  and  that  nothing  now 
was  wanting  but  an  act  of  Parliament  to  dispense  with  the 
state  oaths,  and  he  imagined  that  would  be  easily  obtained. 
The  Archbishop  of  York  gave  no  opinion,  but  wished  that 
I  would  lose  no  time  in  showing  it  to  the  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury.  This  happened  yesterday.  This  morning  I 
went  to  Lambeth,  but  his  Grace  was  gone  out  about  ten 
minutes  before  I  got  there.  I  shall  go  again  to-morrow; 
but  if  I  stay  till  I  have  seen  him,  I  shall  lose  this  opportu- 
nity of  writing,  which  I  am  not  willing  to  do. 

Upon  the  whole,  your  letter  will  do  good.  It  attacks  the 
objections  in  the  right  place,  and  answers  them  fairly ;  and 
will  enable  me  to  take  up  the  business  upon  firmer  ground. 
I  have  determined  with  myself,  that  if  the  Bishops  hang 
back,  to  bring  the  matter  before  Parliament  by  petition, 
and  if  that  shall  fail,  the  scheme  will  be  at  an  end  here,  I 


OF    SAMUEL   SEABURY.  119 

fear  forever.  Capt.  Cowper  will  sail  from  hence  in  three 
weeks,  and  by  him  I  hope  to  be  able  to  give  you  some  satis- 
factory accounts  of  my  procedure. 

You  will,  Gentlemen,  inform  my  friends  at  New  London 
how  matters  are  situated.  I  hope  to  be  with  them  in  the 
course  of  this  summer,  and  shall  not  hesitate  to  trust  my 
future  prospects  to  God's  good  providence,  and  the  kind 
endeavors  of  my  brethren  to  render  my  life  comfortable, 
nay,  happy. 

This  is  a  very  hasty  letter.  I  have  had  only  twenty  min- 
utes to  write  it  in.  My  best  wishes  attend  the  Clergy  of 
Connecticut.  Nova  Scotia  affairs,  civil  and  ecclesiastical,  go 
on  heavily.  The  Parliament  is  to  meet  May  18th.  Mr. 
Learning  will  forgive  my  not  answering  his  letter  now,  be- 
cause it  is  impossible.  All  the  American  Clergy  here  are 
well. 

Accept,  my  good,  my  dear  friends,  the  most  affectionate 
regards  of  your  most  obliged  humble  servant, 

SAMUEL  SEABURY. 

LONDON,  May  3,  1784. 

MY  DEAR  SIR,  —  I  embrace  an  opportunity,  by  the  way 
of  Rhode  Island,  to  address  you  as  Secretary  of  the  Con- 
vention, and  to  inform  you  that  I  have  received  a  letter  of 
the  5th  of  February,  signed  by  yourself  and  my  very  good 
brethren  Learning  and  Hubbard,  for  which  you  all  have 
my  most  hearty  thanks.  I  am  also  to  inform  you  that  I 
wrote  to  you  and  them,  as  a  committee,  on  the  30th  of 
April,  under  cover  to  Mr.  Ellison,  by  a  vessel  bound  to  New 
York  (the  ship  Buccleugh),  acknowledging  the  receipt  of 
the  letter  above  mentioned.  Mine  was  a  very  hasty  letter  — 
but  in  it  I  acquainted  you  that  I  had  shown  your  letter  to 
the  Archbishop  of  York.  We  were  broken  in  upon  by  com- 
pany and  he  gave  me  no  opinion  on  the  letter;  but  desired 
that  I  would  communicate  it  to  the  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury, and  to  the  Bishop  of  London,  as  soon  as  I  conveniently 
could.  I  called,  in  my  way,  on  the  Bishop  of  Oxford,  who 


120  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

has  been  very  attentive  to  me,  speaks  his  mind  without  re- 
serve, and  is  communicative,  and  hears  me  with  patience 
and  candor,  is  much  of  a  gentleman,  and  a  man  of  learn- 
ing and  business.  He  read  the  letter  with  attention  —  said 
he  hardly  thought  it  sufficient  ground  -to  proceed  upon.  I 
endeavored  to  explain  the  arguments  you  had  used,  and 
to  confirm  them  from  the  particular  circumstances  of  the 
Church  in  Connecticut.  He  read  the  letter  again,  com- 
mended it,  spoke  handsomely  of  the  gentlemen  who  wrote 
it,  and  of  the  Clergy  of  Connecticut,  who  so  anxiously  strove 
to  perpetuate  the  Episcopal  Church  —  said  it  would  be  a 
great  pity  that  so  much  piety  and  zeal  in  so  good  a  cause 
should  not  obtain  the  wished  for  object  —  that  the  letter 
certainly  gave  an  opportunity  for  reconsidering  the  mat- 
ter, and  merited  attentive  deliberation,  and  that  possibly  he 
should  yet  come  into  the  opinion  of  its  writers.  I  am  sorry 
that  he  leaves  town  next  week,  as  I  shall  thereby  lose  the 
benefit  of  his  advice  and  assistance. 

From  him  I  went  to  the  Bishop  of  London,  who  is  an 
amiable  man,  but  very  infirm,  and  I  think  his  memory  and 
other  faculties  are  declining  ;  he  avoids  business  as  much  as 
possible.  Having  read  the  letter,  he  asked  many  questions, 
and  when  he  fully  apprehended  the  matter,  he  said  that  he 
thought  that  every  objection  was  removed  on  the  part  of 
the  Connecticut  Clergy,  and  that  an  act  of  Parliament, 
which  he  thought  might  be  easily  obtained,  would  remove 
the  impediment  of  the  state  oaths,  and  that  he  hoped  the 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury  would  see  the  matter  in  the  same 
light  that  he  did. 

The  next  morning  I  went  to  Lambeth,  but  missed  of  see- 
ing his  Grace.  On  the  first  of  May  I  went  again.  His 
Grace's  behavior,  though  polite,  I  thought  was  cool  and 
restrained.  When  he  had  read  the  letter,  he  observed  that 
it  was  still  the  application  only  of  the  Clergy,  and  that 
the  permission  was  only  the  permission  of  individuals,  and 
not  of  the  legislature.  I  observed  that  the  reasons  why  the 
legislature  had  not  been  applied  to  were  specified  in  the 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  121 

letter,  and  that  they  appeared  to  me  to  be  founded  in  reason 
and  good  sense  —  that  had  his  Grace  demanded  the  concur- 
rence of  the  laity  of  the  Church  last  autumn,  it  might  easily 
have  been  procured.  That  it  was  the  first  wish  both  of  the 
Episcopal  Clergy  and  laity  of  Connecticut  to  have  an  Epis- 
copate through  the  clear  and  uninterrupted  channel  of  the 
Church  of  England,  and  my  first  wish  that  his  Grace  and 
the  Archbishop  of  York  might  be  the  instruments  of  its  con- 
veyance—  but  that  if  such  difficulties  and  objections  lay  in 
the  way  as  it  was  impossible  to  remove,  it  was  but  lost  time 
for  me  to  pursue  it  further ;  but  that  I  hoped  his  Grace 
would  converse  with  the  Archbishop  of  York  and  the  Bishop 
of  London  on  the  subject.  He  said  he  certainly  would  as 
soon  as  he  was  able,  but  that  he  was  then  very  unwell.  I 
thought  it  was  no  good  time  to  press  the  matter  while  the 
body  and  mind  were  not  in  perfect  unison,  and  rose  to  with- 
draw, offering  to  leave  the  letter,  as  it  might  be  wanted.  I 
will  not,  said  he,  take  the  original  from  you  lest  it  should 
fare  as  the  letter  you  brought  from  the  Clergy  of  Connecti- 
cut Jias  fared.  I' left  it  with  Lord  North  when  he  was  in 
office,  and  have  never  been  able  to  recover  it ;  but  if  you 
will  favor  me  with  copies  of  both  letters  I  shall  be  obliged 
to  you.  I  promised  compliance,  and  took  my  leave. 

Dr.  Chandler  has  been  with  him  to-day  on  the  subject 
of  the  Nova  Scotia  Episcopate,  which,  I  believe,  will  be  ef- 
fected. His  Grace  introduced  the  subject  of  Connecticut ; 
declared  his  readiness  to  do  everything  in  his  power,  com- 
plimented the  Clergy  of  Connecticut,  and  your  humble  serv- 
ant, talked  of  an  act  of  Parliament,  and  mentioned  that 
some  young  gentlemen  from  the  Southern  States,  who  were 
here  soliciting  orders,  had  applied  to  the  Danish  Bishops, 
through  the  medium  of  the  Danish  ambassador  at  the  Hague, 
upon  a  supposition  that  he  was  averse  to  conferring  orders 
on  them ;  but  that  the  supposition  was  groundless,  he  being 
willing  and  ready  to  do  it  when  it  could  be  consistently  done. 
These  young  gentlemen  had  met  with  every  encouragement 
to  tempt  them  to  a  voyage  to  Denmark. 


122  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

Upon  the  whole,  you  will  perceive  that  your  letter  has 
done  great  service  of  itself  ;  and  it  has  enabled  me  to  open  a 
new  battery,  which  I  will  mount  with  the  heaviest  cannon 
and  mortars  I  can  muster,  and  will  play  them  as  vigorously 
as  possible. 

I  anxiously  expect  the  next  arrival  from  New  York,  in 
hopes  I  shall  receive  the  act  you  refer  to  respecting  the 
Church  in  Connecticut,  and  which  his  Grace  thinks  will  be 
necessary  to  enable  him  to  proceed. 

I  hope,  my  dear  friend,  that  I  shall  be  with  you  in  the 
course  of  this  summer,  and  be  happy  with  you  in  the  full 
enjoyment  of  our  holy  religion.  Make  my  most  affectionate 
regards  to  the  Clergy  as  you  have  opportunity.  No  one  es- 
teems them  more,  or  loves  them  more  than  I  do.  They  are 
the  salt  which  must  now  preserve  our  Church  from  all  decay, 
and  in  perfect  health  and  soundness. 

I  shall  wait  on  his  Grace  on  Wednesday  —  this  is  Mon- 
day—  and  if  I  am  fortunate  enough  to  see  him,  shall  put 
a  note  for  you  into  the  mail  which  will  close  on  Wednesday 
night  for  New  York. 

Believe  me  to  be  your  ever  affectionate  friend,  and  very 

humble  servant,  SAMUEL  SEABURY. 

t 

Dr.  Seabury  was  wearied  with  words  and  longed 
for  action.  To  go  repeatedly  over  the  same  ground 
and  find  no  real  progress  made  was  disheartening. 
The  two  archbishops,  when  all  other  obstacles  were 
removed,  would  come  back  to  the  point  of  the  king's 
dispensation  or  an  act  of  Parliament,  and  there  was 
no  meeting  this  with  any  effective  reasons.  The  min- 
istry in  power  cared  less  for  the  Church  than  the 
State,  and  could  not  be  induced  to  take  up  matters 
which  were  not  calculated  to  promote  the  interests 
of  their  own  party.  "This  is  certainly  the  worst 
country  in  the  world,"  said  Seabury,  "  to  do  business 
in.  I  wonder  how  they  get  on  at  any  rate."  The 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  123 

tempting  offers  of  the  British  government  led  several 
of  the  clergy  in  Connecticut  to  remove  with  a  portion 
of  their  congregations  to  Nova  Scotia.  This  fact  was 
referred  to  in  a  letter  to  Mr.  Jarvis,  dated 

LONDON,  May  24,  1784. 

MY  DEAR  SIB,  —  By  the  last  packet  I  wrote  to  you  as 
Secretary  of  the  Episcopal  Convention  in  Connecticut,  under 
cover  to  Mr.  Ellison  at  New  York,  and  a  day  or  two  after 
by  a  vessel  to  Rhode  Island,  under  cover  to  Mr.  Jona.  Starr, 
of  New  London.  Both  which  letters,  I  flatter  myself,  will 
get  safe  to  you.  Since  those  letters  I  have  had  two  inter- 
views with  his  Grace  of  Canterbury,  the  last  this  morning. 
He  declares  himself  ready  to  do  everything  in  his  power  to 
promote  the  business  I  am  engaged  in  ;  but  still  thinks  that 
an  act  of  Parliament  will  be  necessary  to  enable  him  to  pro- 
ceed ;  and  also  that  the  act  of  the  Legislature  of  your  State, 
which  you  mentioned  would  be  sent  me  by  Mr.  Learning, 
is  absolutely  necessary  oa  which  to  found  an  application  to 
Parliament.  I  pleased  myself  with  the  prospect  of  receiving 
the  copy  of  that  act  by  the  last  packet,  the  letters  of  which 
arrived  here  the  15th  inst.  ;  but  great  was  my  mortification, 
that  no  letter  came  to  me  from  my  good  and  ever  dear 
friends.  What  I  shall  do  I  know  not,  as  the  business  is  at 
a  dead  stand  without  it ;  and  the  Parliament  is  now  sit- 
ting. If  the  next  arrival  does  not  bring  it,  I  shall  be  at 
my  wit's  end.  Send  it,  therefore,  by  all  means,  even  after 
the  receipt  of  this  letter;  or  if  you  have  sent  it,  send  a 
duplicate. 

His  Grace  says  he  sees  no  reason  to  despair ;  but  yet  that 
matters  are  in  such  a  state  of  uncertainty  that  he  knows  not 
how  to  promise  anything.  He  complains  of  the  people  in 
power  ;  that  there  is  no  getting  them  to  attend  to  anything 
in  which  their  own  party  interest  is  not  concerned.  This  is 
certainly  the  worst  country  in  the  world  to  do  business  in. 
I  wonder  how  they  get  along  at  any  rate.  But  if  I  had  the 
act  of  your  State  which  you  refer  to  in  your  letter,  I  should 


124  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

be  able  to  bring  the  matter  to  a  crisis,  and  it  would  be  de- 
termined, one  way  or  the  other.  And  as  it  is  attended  with 
uncertainty  whether  I  shall  succeed  here,  I  have,  in  two  or 
three  letters  to  Mr.  Learning,  requested  to  know,  whether 
in  case  of  failure  here,  it  would  be  agreeable  to  the  Clergy 
in  Connecticut  that  I  should  apply  to  the  nonjuring  Bishops 
in  Scotland,  who  have  been  sounded  and  declare  their  readi- 
ness to  carry  the  business  into  execution.  I  hope  to  receive 
instructions  on  this  head  by  the  next  arrival,  and  in  the  mean 
time  must  watch  occasions  as  they  rise. 

Believe  me,  there  is  nothing  that  is  not  base  that  I  would 
not  do,  nor  any  risk  that  I  would  not  run,  nor  any  incon- 
venience to  myself  that  I  would  not  encounter,  to  carry  this 
business  into  effect.  And  I  assure  you,  if  I  do  not  succeed, 
it  shall  not  be  my  fault. 

There  is  one  piece  of  intelligence  we  have  heard  from 
Nova  Scotia  that  gives  me  some  uneasiness,  viz :  that  Messrs. 
Andrews,  Hubbard  and  Scovil  are  expected  in  Nova  Scotia 
this  summer,  with  a  large  proportion  of  their  congregations. 
This  intelligence  operates  against  me.  For  if  these  gentle- 
men cannot,  or  if  they  and  their  congregations  do  not  choose 
to  stay  in  Connecticut,  why  should  a  Bishop  go  there  ?  I 
answer  one  reason  of  their  going  is  the  hopes  of  enjoying 
their  religion  fully,  which  they  cannot  do  in  Connecticut 
without  a  Bishop. 

I  beg  my  most  respectful  regards  may  be  made  to  the 
Clergy  of  Connecticut,  and  that  they  will  believe  me  to  be 
anxiously  engaged  in  the  fulfillment  of  their  wishes  in  the 
business  of  the  Episcopate  proposed. 

Believe  me  to  be,  dear  Sir,  your  hearty  well  wisher,  and 
very  humble  servant,  SAMUEL  SEABURY. 

The  foregoing  letter  had  scarcely  reached  its  desti- 
nation when  he  wrote  again  to  Mr.  Jarvis,  acknowl- 
edging the  receipt  of  the  act  of  the  General  Assem- 
bly, which  he  had  been  expecting  with  so  much 
solicitude.  Liberal  as  it  was,  it  was  insufficient,  in 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  125 

the  view  of  his  Grace  of  Canterbury,  to  enable  him  to 
proceed  to  consecrate  without  an  act  of  Parliament ; 
but  it  was  the  very  thing  that  Dr.  Seabury  felt  he 
needed  on  which  to  found  the  application  for  such  an 
act.  He  was  encouraged  to  wait  for  the  issue  of  this 
step,  and  in  the  mean  time,  he  resolved,  in  case  of 
failure,  which  he  had  reason  to  anticipate,  to  turn  his 
face  to  Scotland  and  seek  consecration  there,  where 
the  true  succession  derived  of  old  time  from  English 
bishops  was  carefully  preserved. 

It  has  been  seen  that  this  plan  entered  into  his 
original  instructions  from  the  clergy  of  Connecticut 
before  crossing  the  Atlantic ;  but  he  desired  the  re- 
newal of  these  instructions,  or  rather,  he  wished  to 
know  if  the  clergy  were  ready  to  relinquish  their 
preferences  for  the  Episcopacy  in  the  direct  English 
line,  and  allow  him  to  obtain  it  from  a  legitimate 
branch  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  which  fortunately 
was  not  hampered  by  the  entanglements  of  a  state 
alliance.  They  could  not  ask  him  to  prosecute  nego- 
tiations that  might  involve  him  in  further  personal 
sacrifices.  The  voyage  to  England  was  undertaken 
solely  at  his  own  expense,  and  all  the  property  which 
he  had  was  embarked  in  the  enterprise.  Their  com- 
munion in  this  country  was  known  as  the  English 
Church,  and  while  they  were  strongly  attached  to  it 
and  its  succession  of  bishops,  and  had  reason  to  be 
grateful  to  the  venerable  Society  for  stipends,  which 
they  hoped  would  be  continued  for  a  time  at  least, 
they  did  not  wish  him  to  abandon  the  object  for 
which  he  had  gone,  and  return  to  America  without 
the  Episcopacy. 

He  knew  the  disposition  of  the  Scottish  bishops. 


126  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

The  Eev.  Dr.  George  Berkeley,  the  second  son  of  the 
celebrated  Bishop  of  Cloyne,  who  had  been  interested 
in  the  American  Church  from  his  early  youth,  wrote 
to  the  Kev.  John  Skinner,  of  Aberdeen,  in  October, 
1782,  and  expressed  the  hope  "  that  a  most  impor- 
tant good  might  erelong  be  derived  to  the  suffering 
and  nearly  neglected  sons  of  Protestant  Episcopacy 
on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic  from  the  suffering 

Church  of  Scotland I  would  humbly  submit 

it,"  he  went  on  to  say,  "  to  the  bishops  of  the  Church 
in  Scotland  (as  we  style  her  in  Oxford),  whether  this 
be  not  a  time  peculiarly  favorable  to  the  introduction 
of  the  Protestant  Episcopate  on  the  footing  of  univer- 
sal toleration,  and  before  any  anti-Episcopal  establish- 
ment shall  have  taken  place.  God  direct  the  hearts 
of  your  prelates  in  this  matter." l 

This  letter  was  addressed  to  Mr.  Skinner  as  a  pres- 
byter, for  Dr.  Berkeley  was  not  aware  that  he  had 
been  raised  a  few  days  before  to  the  Episcopal  office, 
having  been  consecrated  September  25,  1782,  as  co- 
adjutor to  the  Primus  in  the  see  of  Aberdeen,  at  Lu- 
thermuir,  a  secluded  chapel  near  Laurencekirk  in  the 
Diocese  of  Brechin,  one  of  the  few  chapels  which 
escaped  the  ravages  of  the  Hanoverian  soldiers  after 
the  insurrection  of  1745.2  The  correspondence  was 
continued,  and  in  answering  objections  which  had 
been  made  to  the  proposal,  Dr.  Berkeley  said  :  "  I  am 
as  far  removed  from  Erastianisrn  and  from  democ- 
racy as  any  man  ever  was ;  I  do  heartily  abominate 
both  of  those  anti-scriptural  systems.  Had  my  hon- 

1  MS.  Seabury  papers   quoted   in  Wilberforce's   Hist,   of  American 
Church,  p.  149,  Am.  ed. 

2  Grub's  Eccl  Hist,  of  Scotland,  vol.  iv.,  p.  91. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  127 

ored  father's  scheme  for  planting  an  Episcopal  col- 
lege, whereof  he  was  to  have  been  president,  in  the 
Summer  Islands,  not  been  sacrificed  by  the  worst 
minister  that  Britain  ever  saw,  probably  under  a  mild 
monarch  (who  loves  the  Church  of  England  as  much 
as  I  believe  his  grandfather  hated  it),  Episcopacy 
would  have  been  established  in  America  by  a  succes- 
sion from  the  English  Church,  unattended  by  any  in- 
vidious temporal  rank  or  power.  But  the  dissenting 
miscellaneous  interest  in  England  has  watched  with 
too  successful  a  jealousy,  over  the  honest  intentions 

of  our  best  bishops 

"From  the  churches  of  England  and  Ireland, 
America  will  not  now  receive  the  Episcopate ;  if  she 
might,  I  am  persuaded  that  many  of  her  sons  would 
joyfully  receive  bishops  from  Scotland.  The  ques- 
tion then,  shortly,  is,  Can  any  proper  persons  be 
found  who,  with  the  spirit  of  confessors,  would  con- 
vey the  great  blessing  of  the  Protestant  Episcopacy 
from  the  persecuted  Church  of  Scotland  to  the  strug- 
gling persecuted  Protestant  Episcopalian  worshippers 
in  America?  If  so,  is  it  not  the  duty  of  all  and 
every  bishop  of  the  Church  in  Scotland  to  contribute 
towards  the  sending  into  the  New  World  Protestant 
bishops  before  general  assemblies  can  be  held  and 
covenants  taken,  for  their  perpetual  exclusion  ?  Lib- 


er avi  animam  meam." 


Bishop  Skinner  could  not  but  listen  with  deep  in- 
terest to  the  suggestions  of  one  so  distinguished  and 
prominent  among  the  clergy  of  the  English  Church. 
Still  he  saw  difficulties  in  the  way,  and  said  in  his  re- 
ply :  "  Nothing  can  be  done  in  the  affair  with  safety 
on  our  side,  till  the  independence  of  America  be  fully 


128  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

and  irrevocably  recognized  by  the  government  of 
Britain;  and  even  then  the  enemies  of  our  Church 
might  make  a  handle  of  our  correspondence  with  the 
colonies  as  a  proof  that  we  always  wished  to  fish  in 
troubled  waters,  and  we  have  little  need  to  give  any 
ground  for  an  imputation  of  this  kind."  1 

On  the  24th  of  March,  1783,  at  the  very  time 
when  the  clergy  of  Connecticut  were  assembled  in 
Wood  bury  and  were  considering  the  plan  of  sending 
abroad  a  presbyter  to  obtain  the  apostolic  office,  Dr. 
Berkeley  wrote  again  to  Bishop  Skinner,  and,  with 
becoming  deference,  renewed  his  endeavor  to  bring 
about  a  consecration  in  Scotland  for  the  American 
Church.  "I  believe,"  he  added,  " a  secret  subscrip- 
tion could  be  raised  adequate  to  the  purposes  of  sup- 
porting one  pious,  sensible,  discreet  bishop,  at  least 
for  a  season  #fter  his  arrival  in  Virginia ;  and  I  think 
I  know  one  person  competent  and  willing  for  the 
great  work." 

Thus  the  way  was  opened  for  Seabury  in  Scotland 
before  he  left  his  own  country.  Men,  without  know- 
ing the  movements  of  each  other,  were  taking  steps 
to  accomplish  the  same  object,  and  a  wise  Providence 
controlled  events  and  directed  them  to  successful  is- 
sues. No  sooner  had  Dr.  Seabury  reached  London 
than  he  began  to  act  on  his  primary  instructions,  and 
applied,  as  his  letters  and  testimonials  required  him 
to  do,  to  the  Archbishops  of  Canterbury  and  York 
for  consecration.  It  does  not  appear  that  his  affair 
was  made  known  in  North  Britain  until  the  Novem- 
ber subsequent  to  his  arrival,  when  "  a  letter  was  dis- 
patched by  Mr.  Elphinstone,  a  man  of  literary  repu- 

1  MS.  Seabury  papers  quoted  by  Wilberforce. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  129 

tation,  the  son  of  a  Scotch  clergyman,  in  which  the 
following  question  was  put  to  the  Primus  or  presid- 
ing bishop  of  the  Church  in  Scotland :  '  Can  consecra- 
tion be  obtained  in  Scotland  for  an  already  dignified 
and  well-vouched  American  clergyman,  now  at  Lon- 
don, for  the  purpose  of  perpetuating  the  Episcopal  re- 
formed church  in  America,  particularly  in  Connecti- 
cut?'" 

At  the  same  time,  Dr.  Berkeley  wrote  again  to 
Bishop  Skinner  with  much  earnestness,  and  said :  "  I 
have  this  day  heard,  I  need  not  add  with  the  sincer- 
est  pleasure,  that  a  respectable  presbyter,  well  recom- 
mended, from  America,  has  arrived  in  London,  seek- 
ing what,  it  seems,  in  the  present  state  of  affairs,  he 
cannot  expect  to  receive  in  our  Church. 

"  Surely,  dear  sir,  the  Scotch  prelates,  who  are  not 
shackled  by  any  Erastian  Connection,  will  not  send 
this  suppliant  empty  away. 

"  I  scruple  not  to  give  it  as  my  decided  opinion 
that  the  king,  some  of  his  counsellors,  all  our  bishops 
(except,  peradventure,  the  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph),  and 
all  the  learned  and  respectable  clergy  of  our  Church, 
will  at  least  secretly  rejoice,  if  a  Protestant  bishop 
be  sent  from  Scotland  to  America;  but  more  espe- 
cially if  Connecticut  be  the  scene  of  his  ministry.  It 
would  be  waste  of  words  to  say  anything  by  the  way 
of  stirring  up  Bishop  Skinner's  zeal."  * 

Dr.  Berkeley  gave  a  ready  and  satisfactory  reply  to 
inquiries  about  the  personal  fitness  of  the  candidate, 
as  well  as  an  assurance  that  nothing  need  be  appre- 
hended in  the  style  of  "  opposition  from  the  Eng- 
lish government  to  their  granting  a  consecration, 

1  History  of  the  American  Church,  pp.  153,  154. 


130  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

which  can  contradict  no  law,  for  a  foreign  and  inde- 
pendent State." 

Other  clergymen  interested  themselves  in  the  mat- 
ter, and  the  Scottish  bishops  must  have  signified  their 
willingness  to  comply  with  the  proposal  when  Dr. 
Seabury  wrote  his  letter  to  Mr.  Jarvis,  dated 

LONDON,  June  26,  1784. 

MY  DEAR  SIB,  —  I  have  now  to  inform  you  that  I  re- 
ceived on  the  17th  inst.  Mr.  Learning's  letter,  inclosing  the 
act  of  the  legislature  of  Connecticut,  respecting  liberty  of 
conscience  in  that  State.  Upon  the  whole,  I  think  it  a  lib- 
eral one;  and,  if  it  be  fairly  interpreted  and  abided  by, 
fully  adequate  to  all  good  purposes.  I  have  had  a  long  con- 
versation with  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  and  another 
with  the  Archbishop  of  York,  on  the  act.  •  They  seem  to 
think  the  principal  objections  are  removed  as  far  as  you  or 
I  are  concerned.  They  spoke  handsomely  of  the  clergy 
of  Connecticut,  and  declared  themselves  satisfied  with  your 
humble  servant,  whom  the  clergy  were  pleased  to  recom- 
mend to  them.  But  I  apprehend  there  are  some  difficulties 
here  that  may  not  easily  be  got  over.  These  arise  from 
the  restrictions  the  Bishops  are  under  about  consecrating 
without  the  King's  leave,  and  the  doubt  seems  to  be  about 
the  King's  leave  to  consecrate  a  Bishop  who  is  not  to  reside 
in  his  dominions;  and  about  the  validity  of  his  dispens- 
ing with  the  oath,  in  case  he  has  power  to  grant  leave  of 
consecration.  I  have  declared  my  opinion,  which  is,  that 
as  there  is  no  law  existing  relative  to  a  Bishop  who  is  to 
reside  in  a  foreign  state,  the  Archbishops  are  left  to  the 
general  laws  of  the  Christian  Church,  and  have  no  need 
either  of  the  King's  leave  or  dispensation.  But  the  opinion 
of  so  little  a  man  cannot  have  much  weight.  The  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury  supposes  that  an  act  of  Parliament  will 
be  necessary ;  yet  he  wishes  to  get  through  the  business,  if 
possible,  without  it,  and  acknowledged  that  the  opinion  of 
the  majority  of  the  Bishops  differed  from  his.  The  ques- 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  131 

tions  are  referred  to  the  attorney  and  solicitor-general,  and 
their  opinion,  should  they  agree,  will,  I  presume,  determine 
the  point.  This  opinion,  I  hope,  will  be  obtained  in  a  short 
time,  as  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  has  promised  to  con- 
sult them.  Should  I  know  the  result  time  enough,  I  will 
give  it  you  by  the  next  packet,  which  will  sail  in  a  fort- 
night. 

I  have  had  opportunities  of  consulting  some  very  respect- 
able clergymen  in  this  matter,  and  their  invariable  opin- 
ion is,  that  should  I  be  disappointed  here,  where  the  busi- 
ness had  been  so  fairly,  candidly,  and  honorably  pursued, 
it  would  become  my  duty  to  obtain  Episcopal  consecration 
wherever  it  can  be  had,  and  that  no  exception  could  be  taken 
here  at  my  doing  so.  The  Scotch  succession  was  named. 
It  was  said  to  be  equal  to  any  succession  in  the  world,  etc. 
There  I  know  consecration  may  be  had.  But  with  regard  to 
this  matter,  I  hope  to  hear  from  you  in  answer  to  a  letter 
I  wrote  to  Mr.  Learning,  I  think  in  April.  Should  I  receive 
any  instructions  from  the  clergy  of  Connecticut,  I  shall  at- 
tend to  them ;  if  not,  I  shall  act  according  to  the  best  ad- 
vice I  can  get,  and  my  own  judgment. 

Believe  me,  there  is  nothing  I  have  so  much  at  heart  as 
the  accomplishment  of  the  business  you  have  intrusted  to 
my  management ;  and  I  am  ready  to  make  every  sacrifice  of 
worldly  consideration  that  may  stand  in  the  way  of  its  com- 
pletion. I  am,  reverend  Sir,  with  the  greatest  esteem,  your 
and  the  Clergy's  most  obedient  servant, 

SAMUEL  SEABUKY. 

A  month  passed  away,  and  he  wrote  again,  address- 
ing his  letter  this  time  to  the  clergy  of  Connecticut, 
and  showing  that  he  was  near  the  end  of  his  impor- 
tunities with  the  English  bishops.  If  the  enabling 
act,  which  he  was  encouraged  to  believe  would  be 
introduced  into  Parliament  then  in  session,  should 
be  rejected,  or,  which  was  tantamount  to  the  same 


132  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

thing,  should  not  be  reached  before  adjournment,  in 
the  press  of  purely  political  measures,  it  would  be 
useless  for  him  to  prosecute  his  undertaking  fur- 
ther in  England.  He  would  be  justified  in  that  case 
in  seeking  consecration  elsewhere,  unless  instructions 
in  the  mean  time  came  from  the  clergy  of  Connecti- 
cut, directing  him  to  wait  still  longer.1  And  so  he 
expressed  his  intention  under  date  of 

LONDON,  July  26,  1784. 

GENTLEMEN,  —  I  take  the  opportunity  by  Mr.  Townsend 
to  write  to  you,  although  I  have  little  more  to  say  than  I 
have  already  said  in  my  late  letters. 

On  the  21st  inst.  I  had  an  interview  with  the  Archbishop 
of  Canterbury.  I  was  with  him  an  hour.  He  entered  fully 
and  warmly  into  my  business ;  declared  himself  fully  sensi- 
ble of  the  expediency,  justice,  and  necessity  of  the  measure ; 
and  also  of  the  necessity  of  its  being  carried  immediately 
into  execution.  An  act  of  Parliament,  however,  will  be 
requisite  to  enable  the  Bishops  to  proceed  without  incurring 
a  Prcemunire.  A  bill  for  this  purpose  I  am  encouraged  to 
expect  will  be  brought  in  as  soon  as  the  proper  steps  are 
taken  to  insure  it  an  easy  passage  through  the  two  Houses. 
The  previous  measures  are  now  concerting,  and  I  am  flattered 
with  every  prospect  of  success.  But  everything  here  is  at- 
tended with  uncertainty  till  it  is  actually  done.  Men  or 
measures,  or  both,  may  be  changed  to-morrow,  and  then  all 
will  be  to  go  through  again.  However,  I  shall  patiently 

1  The  Rev.  Tillotson  Bronson,  ordained  in  this  country  a  deacon  Sep- 
tember 21,  1786,  closed  the  publication  of  the  original  documents  in  the 
periodical  of  which  he  was  editor,  by  stating  that  a  letter  from  the  clergy 
of  Connecticut  directing  Dr.  Seabury,  in  case  he  failed  with  the  English 
bishops,  to  proceed  to  Scotland,  and  another  from  him  to  the  clergy 
communicating  an  account  of  his  failure,  were  known  to  have  been  writ- 
ten ;  but  they  did  not  appear  on  file,  and  all  attempts  to  recover  them 
had  been  unsuccessful. 

See  Churchman's  Magazine  for  1806,  p.  276. 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  133 

wait  the  issue  of  the  present  session  of  Parliament,  which,  it 
is  the  common  opinion,  will  continue  a  month  longer.  If 
nothing  be  done,  I  shall  give  up  the  matter  here  as  unat- 
tainable, and  apply  to  the  North,  unless  I  should  receive 
contrary  directions  from  the  Clergy  of  Connecticut. 

The  various  difficulties  I  have  had  to  struggle  with,  and 
the  various  steps  I  have  taken  to  get  through  them,  are  too 
long  to  communicate  by  letter  ;  but  I  htfpe  to  spend  the  next 
winter  in  Connecticut,  and  then  you  shall  know  all,  at  least 
all  that  I  shall  remember. 

My  best  regards  attend  the  Clergy  and  all  my  friends  and 
the  friends  of  the  Church.  I  hope  yet  to  spend  some  happy 
years  with  them.  Accept,  my  good  brethren,  the  best 
wishes  of  your  affectionate  humble  servant, 

SAMUEL  SEABURY. 

The  act  of  Parliament  referred  to  in  this  letter  en- 
abled the  Bishop  of  London  to  admit  foreign  candi- 
dates to  the  order  of  deacons  and  priests,  but  gave 
no  permission  to  consecrate  a  bishop  for  Connecticut 
or  for  any  of  the  American  States.  That  permission 
was  placed  on  a  different  footing,  though  it  is  difficult 
to  see  wherein  there  was  any  real  difference  in  prin- 
ciple. It  was  said  that  before  it  would  be  granted, 
the  formal  consent  of  Congress,  or  of  the  authority  of 
some  particular  State,  was  necessary,  and  that  before 
a  bishop  would  be  consecrated,  a  diocese  must  be 
formed  and  provision  for  his  support  secured. 

"  A  few  young  gentlemen  to  the  southward,"  l  who 
had  been  educated  for  the  ministry,  but  were  detained 
by  the  troubles  of  the  Eevolution,  embarked  for  Eng- 
land after  the  acknowledgment  of  American  inde- 
pendence, and  applied  to  Dr.  Lowth,  then  Bishop  of 
London,  for  Holy  Orders.  The  oaths  of  allegiance 

1  Memoirs  of  P.  E.  Churchy  p.  20. 


134  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

were  required,  and  he  could  not,  without  an  act  of 
Parliament  allowing  him  to  dispense  with  them,  pro- 
ceed to  ordain.  Before  the  passage  of  the  act  above 
mentioned,  an  offer  from  the  Danish  government  and 
clergy  was  received  through  Mr.  Adams,  Minister  at 
the  Court  of  St.  James,  to  ordain  candidates  from 
America  who  should  sign  the  Thirty-nine  Articles, 
"with  the  exception  of  the  political  parts  of  them, 
the  service  to  be  performed  in  Latin,  in  accommoda- 
tion to  the  candidates,  who  might  be  supposed  unac- 
quainted with  the  language  of  the  country."  The 
offer  had  no  reference  to  the  Episcopacy,  and  the 
Church  in  Denmark  does  not  appear  to  have  been 
thought  of  in  connection  with  the  consecration  of 
Dr.  Seabury.  It  has  recently  been  stated  to  the  con- 
trary in  a  memoir  of  Dr.  Kouth,1  but  we  have  not 
found  a  particle  of  evidence  in  his  own  letters  and 
papers  that  he  ever  dreamed  of  betaking  himself  to 
that  quarter,  if  he  failed  in  his  application  to  the  Eng- 
lish bishops. 

Overtures  were  made  for  him,  without  his  knowl- 
edge, to  Cartwright,  of  Shrewsbury,  an  irregular  non- 
juror  of  the  Separatist  party  in  England,  who  with 
Price  was  consecrated  uncanonically  in  1780  by  a 
single  bishop,  just  as  Robert  Wei  ton  was  consecrated 
by  Ralph  Taylor,  and  John  Talbot  by  Taylor  and 
Welton ;  these  men,  Welton  and  Talbot,  never  being 
recognized  as  bishops,  however,  by  the  rest  of  the 
body,  yet  both  coming  to  America  and  exercising 
secretly  Episcopal  functions.2  Providentially  the  ap- 
plication to  Cartwright  was  unnecessary,  but  Dr.  Sea- 

1  London  Quarterly  Review,  July,  1878. 

2  See  Lathbury's  History  of  the  Non- Jurors,  cli.  ix. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  135 

bury  acknowledged  his  kindness  in  the  following  let- 
ter, dated 

LONDON,  October  (supposed)  the  15^,  1784. 

RIGHT  REV.  SIR,  —  Some  time  ago  a  letter  from  you  to 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Chandler  respecting  some  queries  proposed  by 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Boucher  was  put  into  my  hands.  This  was 
the  first  information  I  had  received  concerning  yourself  or 
Bishop  Price.  And  as  I  am  in  spiritual  matters  totally  in- 
dependent OF  ANY  CIVIL  POWER,  and  have  no  manner  of  ob- 
jection ;  but  a  sincere  inclination  to  conform  myself,  as  near 
as  possible,  to  the  primitive  Catholic  Church,  in  doctrine  and 
discipline,  that  letter  would  have  been  immediately  attended 
to  by  me,  had  I  not  primarily  entered  into  a  negotiation 
with  the  Bishops  in  the  North,  to  obtain  through  them  a  free, 
valid,  and  purely  Ecclesiastical  Episcopacy  for  the  Church 
in  Connecticut.  Till  within  a  few  days  I  have  had  no  de- 
cided answer  from  the  North,  and  therefore  did  not  sooner 
write  to  you  because  I  could  make  no  certain  reply  to  your 
letter.  But  as  the  issue  of  the  negotiation  I  was  engaged  in 
is  such  that  I  cannot  in  honor  retreat,  I  can  only  at  present 
return  you  my  hearty  and  unfeigned  thanks  for  the  candid 
communication  and  liberal  sentiments  which  your  letter  con- 
tained ;  and  to  assure  you  that  I  shall  ever  retain  the  high- 
est esteem  and  veneration,  both  for  yourself  and  Bishop 
Price,  on  account  of  the  ready  disposition  which  you  both 
show,  to  impart  the  great  blessing  of  a  primitive  Episcopacy 
to  the  destitute  Church  in  America.  Should  any  circum- 
stances render  it  convenient  to  open  a  further  correspondence 
on  this,  or  any  other  subject  in  which  the  interest  of  Christ's 
Church  may  be  concerned,  I  flatter  myself  with  a  continu- 
ance of  that  spirit  of  liberality  and  Christian  condescension 
which  your  letter  manifested;  and  shall  make  it  my  study  to 
return  it  in  the  most  open  and  unreserved  manner. 

Be  pleased  to  present  my  best  respects  to  Bishop  Price, 
and  to  accept  the  tender  of  unfeigned  regard  and  esteem 
from,  Right  Rev.  Sir,  your  most  obedient  and  very  humble 
servant,  S.  S.1 

1  MS.  Letter-Book. 


136  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

On  the  31st  of  August,  1784,  Dr.  Seabury  wrote 
from  London  to  the  Kev.  Dr.  Myles  Cooper,  his 
friend  and  former  fellow-sufferer  for  loyalty  in  this 
country,  and  through  him  applied  to  the  Scottish 
bishops  for  the  boon  which  he  had  failed  to  obtain  in 
England.  His  letter,  transcribed  from  the  copy  in 
his  own  handwriting,  reads  :  — 

MY  DEAR  SIK,  —  I  hope  this  letter  will  find  you  safe  at 
Edinboro'  in  good  health  and  spirits.  Here  everything,  in 
which  I  have  any  concern,  continues  in  the  same  state  as 
when  I  saw  you  at  your  castle.  I  have  been  for  some  time 
past,  and  yet  am,  in  daily  expectation  of  hearing  from  Con- 
necticut, but  [there]  have  been  no  late  arrivals,  nor  shall  I 
wait  for  any  provided  I  hear  any  favorable  account  from  you, 
but  shall  hold  myself  in  readiness  to  set  off  for  the  North  at 
twenty-four  hours'  notice.  With  regard  to  myself,  it  is  not 
my  fault  that  I  have  not  done  it  before,  but  I  thought  it  my 
duty  to  pursue  the  plan  marked  out  for  me  by  the  clergy  of 
Connecticut,  as  long  as  there  was  any  probable  chance  of  suc- 
ceeding. That  probably  is  now  at  an  end,  and  I  think  my- 
self at  liberty  to  pursue  such  other  scheme  as  shall  insure  to 
them  a  valid  Episcopacy,  and  such  I  take  the  Scotch  Episco- 
pacy to  be  in  every  sense  of  the  word ;  and  such  I  know  the 
clergy  of  Connecticut  consider  it,  and  have  always  done  so ; 
but  the  connection  that  has  always  subsisted  between  them 
and  the  Church  of  England,  and  the  generous  support  they 
have  hitherto  received  from  that  Church,  naturally  led  them, 
though  no  longer  a  part  of  the  British  dominions,  to  apply 
to  that  Church  in  the  first  instance  for  relief  in  their  spir- 
itual necessity.  Unhappily  the  connection  of  this  Church 
with  the  State  is  so  intimate  that  the  Bishops  can  do  little 
without  the  consent  of  the  Ministry,  and  the  Ministry  have 
refused  to  permit  a  Bishop  to  be  consecrated  for  Connecticut, 
or  for  any  other  of  the  thirteen  States,  without  the  formal 
request,  or  at  least  consent,  of  Congress,  which  there  is  no 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  137 

chance  of  obtaining,  and  which  the  clergy  would  not  apply 
for  were  the  chance  ever  so  good.  They  are  content  with 
having  the  Episcopal  Church  in  Connecticut  put  upon  the 
same  footing  with  any  other  religious  denomination.  A 
copy  of  the  law  of  the  State  of  Connecticut,  which  enables 
the  Episcopal  congregations  to  transact  their  ecclesiastical 
affairs  upon  their  own  principles,  to  tax  their  members  for 
the  maintenance  of  their  clergy ;  for  the  support  of  their 
worship ;  for  the  building  and  repairing  of  churches,  and 
which  exempts  them  from  all  penalties,  and  from  all  other 
taxes  on  a  religious  account,  I  have  in  my  possession.  The 
Legislature  of  Connecticut  know  that  a  Bishop  is  applied 
for;  they  know  the  person  in  whose  favor  the  application  is 
made,  and  they  give  no  opposition  to  either.  Indeed,  were 
they  disposed  to  object,  they  have  more  prudence  than  to 
attempt  to  object  to  it.  They  know  that  there  are  in  that 
State  more  than  forty  Episcopal  congregations,  many  of 
them  large,  some  of  them  making  the  majority  of  the  inhab- 
itants of  large  towns,  and,  with  those  that  are  scattered 
through  the  State,  composing  a  body  of  near,  or  quite,  forty 
thousand ;  a  body  too  large  to  be  needlessly  affronted  in  an 
elective  government. 

On  this  ground  it  is  that  I  apply  to  the  good  bishops  in 
Scotland,  and  I  hope  I  shall  not  apply  in  vain.  If  they  con- 
sent to  impart  the  Episcopal  succession  to  the  Church  of 
Connecticut,  jthey  will,  I  think,  do  a  good  work,  and  the 
blessing  of  thousands  will  attend  them.  And  perhaps  for 
thisTcause,  among  others,  God's  providence  has  supported 
them,  and  continued  their  succession  under  various  and  great 
difficulties  ;  that  a  free,  valid,  and  purely  ecclesiastical  Epis- 
copacy may  from  them  pass  into  the  Western  world. 

As  to  anything  which  I  receive  here,  it  has  no  influence 
on  me  and  never  has  had  any.  I  indeed  think  it  my  duty 
to  conduct  the  matter  in  such  a  manner  as  shall  risk  the 
salaries  which  the  missionaries  in  Connecticut  receive  from 
the  Society  here  as  little  as  possible,  and  I  persuade  myself 
it  may  be  done  so  as  to  make  that  risk  next  to  nothing. 


138  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

With  respect  to  my  own  salary,  if  the   Society  choose  to 
withdraw  it,  I  am  ready  to  part  with  it. 

It  is  a  matter  of  some  consequence  to  me  that  this  affair 
be  determined  as  soon  as  possible.  I  am  anxious  to  return 
to  America  this  autumn,  and  the  winter  is  fast  approaching, 
when  the  voyage  will  be  attended  with  double  inconvenience 
and  danger,  and  the  expense  of  continuing  here  another 
winter  is  greater  than  will  suit  my  purse.  I  know  you  will 
give  me  the  earliest  intelligence  in  your  power,  and  I  shall 
patiently  wait  till  I  hear  from  you.  My  most  respectful  re- 
gards attend  the  Right  Reverend  gentlemen  under  whose 
consideration  this  business  will  come,  and  as  there  are  none 
but  the  most  open  and  candid  intentions  on  my  part,  so  I 
doubt  not  of  the  most  candid  and  free  construction  of  my 
conduct  on  their  part.  Accept,  my  dear  sir,  of  the  best 
wishes  of  your  ever  affectionate,  etc.,  S.  S.1 

Dr.  Cooper  lost  no  time  in  transmitting  this  letter 
to  Bishop  Kilgour,  the  Primus  of  the  Scottish  Episco- 
pal Church,  and  acquainting  him  that  to  his  knowl- 
edge Dr.  Seabury  was  recommended  by  several 
worthy  clergymen  in  Connecticut  as  a  person  fit  for 
promotion,  and  to  whom  they  were  willing  to  submit 
as  a  bishop.  Pains  were  taken  to  remove  any  fears 
that  had  been  suggested  about  the  risk  of  proceeding 
to  the  consecration.  The  zealous  and  kind-hearted 
Dr.  Berkeley,  who  knew  the  state  of  Episcopacy  in 
Scotland  and  the  principles  of  the  Scotch  Episcopa- 
lians better  than  any  man  at  that  time  in  England, 
wrote  to  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  informing 
him  that  Dr.  Seabury  had  applied  to  the  Scottish 
bishops  to  be  consecrated,  and  if  his  Grace  thought 
that  there  would  be  any  risk  in  yielding  to  the  appli- 
cation, he  begged  that  he  would  be  so  good  as  to  re- 

1  MS.  Letter-Book. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  139 

turn  an  immediate  reply ;  but  if  satisfied  that  no  dan- 
ger would  accrue,  a  reply  was  unnecessary.  No  an- 
swer was  sent,  and  it  was  a  fair  inference  that  while 
the  English  primate  was  not  ready  to  give  it  a  for- 
mal sanction,  he  had  nothing  to  say  in  opposition  to 
the  consecration.1 

A  careful  writer  stated  the  position  of  Dr.  Seabury, 
wearied  with  the  long  delay  in  England,  thus :  "  Hav- 
ing known  before  that  there  was  a  continued  succes- 
sion of  bishops  in  Scotland,  and  finding,  where  he 
then  was,  no  objection  to  the  validity  of  their  Episco- 
pal powers,  whatever  there  might  be  to  the  propriety 
of  their  political  scruples,  he  contrived  to  have  it  in- 
quired at  second  hand,  what  prospect  there  might  be 
of  speedy  success  in  an  application  to  that  quarter,  if 
such  application  should  be  formally  made."2 

1  Wilberforce,  in  his  History  of  the  American  Church,  cites  a  MS.  note 
of  Bishop  Skinner  on  Dr.  Seabury 's  letter  of  application  as  authority  for 
this  statement.     The  note  was  copied  by  Dr.  Seabury  in  his  MS.  Letter- 
Book. 

2  Skinner's  Ecclesiastical  History,  vol.  ii.,  pp.  685,  686. 


140  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 


CHAPTER  IX. 

BISHOP  KILGOUR'S  LETTER,  AND  DR.  SEABURY'S  REPLY  ;  ARRIVAL 
IN  ABERDEEN,  AND  OPPOSITION  OF  DR.  SMITH  ;  CONSECRATION, 
AND  SYNOD  OF  BISHOPS;  CONCORDATS,  AND  ADDRESS  TO  THE 

CLERGY  OF  CONNECTICUT;  PREACHES  IN  ABERDEEN,  AND  BISHOP 

JOLLY'S   PRAYER  ;    RETURN   TO    LONDON,   AND    LETTER   TO    MR. 
BOUCHER. 

A.  D.  1784-1785. 

ALL  objections  on  the  part  of  the  Scottish  prelates 
had  been  previously  overcome.  As  one  of  them  said, 
"  I  do  not  see  how  we  can  account  to  our  great  Lord 
and  Master,  if  we  neglect  such  an  opportunity  of  pro- 
moting His  truth  and  enlarging  the  borders  of  His 
Church."  Bishop  Kilgour  wrote  immediately  to  the 
Rev.  John  Allan,  of  Edinburgh,  by  whom  Dr.  Cooper 
forwarded  the  request  of  Seabury,  and  renewed  in 
the  following  letter  the  offer  to  proceed  to  the  conse- 
cration :  — 

REV.  AND  DEAB  SlK,  —  I  acknowledge  by  the  first  op- 
portunity the  receipt  of  yours  of  the  14th  ult.,  inclosing  Dr. 
Seabury's  letter  to  Dr.  Cooper,  which  I  doubt  not  you  have 
received  in  course. 

Dr.  Seabury's  long  silence,  after  it  had  been  signified  to 
him  that  the  Bishops  of  this  Church  would  comply  with  his 
proposals,  made  them  all  think  that  the  affair  was  dropped, 
and  that  he  did  not  choose  to  be  connected  with  them;  but 
his  letter,  and  the  manner  in  which  he  accounts  for  his  con- 
duct, give  such  satisfaction,  that  I  have  the  pleasure  to  in- 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  141 

form  you  that  we  are  still  willing  to  comply  with  his  propo- 
sal ;  to  clothe  him  with  the  Episcopal  character,  and  thereby 
convey  to  the  Western  world  the  blessing  of  a  free,  valid, 
and  purely  ecclesiastical  Episcopacy ;  not  doubting  that  he 
will  so  agree  with  us  in  doctrine  and  discipline,  as  that  he 
and  the  Church  under  his  charge  in  Connecticut  will  hold 
"communion  with  us  and  the  Church  here  on  catholic  and 
primitive  principles ;  and  so  that  the  members  of  both  may 
with  freedom  communicate  together  in  all  the  offices  of  re- 
ligion. 

We  are  concerned  that  he  should  have  been  so  long  in  de- 
termining himself  to  make  this  application,  and  wish  that  in 
an  affair  of  so  much  importance  he  had  corresponded  with 
one  of  our  number.  However,  as  he  appears  open  and  can- 
did on  his  part,  he  may  believe  the  bishops  will  be  no  less  so 
on  their  part,  and  will  be  glad  how  soon  he  can  set  out  for 
the  North. 

As  I  cannot  undertake  a  journey  to  Edinburgh,  and  it 
would  also  be  too  hard  on  Bishop  Petrie  in  his  very  infirm 
state,  the  only  proper  place  that  remains  for  us  to  meet  in 
is  Aberdeen. 

How  soon  Dr.  Seabury  fixes  on  the  time  for  his  setting 
out,  or  at  least  how  soon  he  comes  into  Scotland,  I  hope  he 
will  address  me ;  as  the  Bishops  will  settle  their  time  of 
meeting  for  his  consecration  as  soon  thereafter  as  their  cir- 
cumstances and  distance  will  permit.  With  a  return  of  the 
Bishops'  most  respectful  regards  to  Dr.  Seabury,  please  ad- 
vise him  of  all  this.  May  God  grant  us  a  happy  meeting 
and  direct  all  to  the  honor  and  glory  of  His  name  and  to 
the  good  of  His  church.  To  His  benediction  I  ever  heartily 
commend  you,  and  am,  Rev.  and  dear  sir,  your  affectionate 
brother  and  humble  servant,  ROBEBT  KiLGOUR.1 

PETERHEAD,  2d  October,  1784. 

In  response  to  this  communication,  Dr.  Seabury 
thus  addressed  Bishop  Kilgour  from  London,  October 
14,  1784. 

1  MS.  Letter-Book. 


142  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

RIGHT  REVD-  SIR,  —  Three  days  ago  I  was  made  happy  by 
the  receipt  of  a  letter  from  my  friend  in  Edinburgh,  inclos- 
ing one  from  you  to  the  Revd-  Mr.  John  Allan,  signifying 
the  consent  of  the  Bishops  in  Scotland  to  convey,  through 
me,  the  blessing  of  a  free,  valid,  and  purely  ecclesiastical 
Episcopacy  to  the  Western  world.  My  most  hearty  thanks 
are  due  to  you,  and  to  the  other  Bishops  for  the  kind  and 
Christian  attention  which  they  show  to  the  suffering  Church 
in  North  America  in  general,  and  that  of  Connecticut  in  par- 
ticular, and  for  that  ready  and  willing  mind  which  they  have 
manifested  in  this  important  affair.  May  God  accept  and 
reward  them  freely  ;  and  grant  that  the  whole  business  may 
terminate  in  the  glory  of  His  name  and  the  prosperity  of 
His  church. 

As  far  as  I  am  concerned,  or  my  influence  shall  extend, 
nothing  shall  be  omitted  to  establish  the  most  liberal  inter- 
course and  union  between  the  Episcopal  Church  in  Scotland 
and  in  Connecticut,  so  that  the  members  of  both  may  freely 
communicate  together  in  all  the  offices  of  religion,  on  cath- 
olic and  primitive  principles. 

Whatever  appearances  there  may  have  been  of  inattention 
on  my  part,  they  will,  I  trust,  when  I  shall  have  the  hap- 
piness of  a  personal  conference,  be  fully,  and  to  a  mind  so 
candid  and  liberal  as  yours,  satisfactorily  explained. 

I  propose,  through  the  favor  of  God's  good  providence,  to 
be  at  Aberdeen  by  the  10th  of  November,  and  shall  there 
wait  the  convening  of  the  Bishops  who  have  so  humanely 
taken  this  matter  under  their  management.  My  best  and 
most  respectful  regards  attend  them. 

Commending  myself  to  your  prayers  and  good  offices,  I 
remain,  Right  Revd-  Sir,  with  the  greatest  respect  and  es- 
teem, your  most  obedient  and  humble  servant,  S.  S. 

On  his  arrival  in  Aberdeen,  Dr.  Seabury  met  with 
new  and  unexpected  opposition.  A  letter  had  been 
addressed  to  the  Scottish  bishops  by  an  American 
clergyman,  appealing  to  them,  if  they  valued  their 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  143 

own  peace  and  advantage  as  a  Christian  society,  not 
to  meddle  with  the  consecration.  He  affirmed  that 
it  was  "  against  the  earnest  and  sound  advice  of  the 
Archbishops  of  Canterbury  and  York,  to  whom  Dr. 
Seabury's  design  was  communicated  ;  they  not  think- 
ing him  a  fit  person,  especially  as  he  was  actively  and 
deeply  engaged  against  Congress  ;  that  he  would  by 
this  forward  step  render  Episcopacy  suspected  there, 
the  people  not  having  had  time,  after  a  total  de- 
rangement of  their  civil  affairs,  to  consider  as  yet  of 
ecclesiastical  •  and  if  it  were  unexpectedly  and  rashly 
introduced  among  them  at  the  instigation  of  a  few 
clergy  only  that  remain,  without  their  being  con- 
sulted, would  occasion  it  to  be  entirely  slighted,  un- 
less with  the  approbation  of  the  State  they  belong  to ; 
which  is  what  they  are  laboring  after  just  now,  hav- 
ing called  several  provincial  meetings  together  this 
autumn,  to  settle  some  preliminary  articles  of  a  Prot- 
estant Episcopal  Church,  as  near  as  may  be  to  that 
of  England  or  Scotland."  1 

The  author  of  this  letter  was  the  Rev.  Dr.  William 
Smith,  a  Scotchman  by  birth,  formerly  provost  of  the 
college  and  academy  of  Philadelphia,  but  then  at  the 
head  of  Washington  College,  in  Maryland.  He  had 
views  of  his  own  to  promote,  and  hoped  and  made 
efforts  to  be  raised  to  the  Episcopate  in  Maryland, 
which  he  seems  to  have  feared  that  the  consecration 
of  Seabury  might  frustrate.  The  Scottish  bishops 
had  too  many  evidences  of  the  Christian  character  of 
the  candidate,  and  were  too  well  persuaded  of  the 
unreasonableness  of  not  complying  with  his  request, 
to  be  hindered  by  such  a  communication. 

1  MS.  Seabury  papers  cited  by  Wilberforce,  p.  157. 


144  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

The  severe  penal  laws  under  which  the  non-juring 
bishops  in  Scotland  and  their  clergy  fell,  for  not  dis- 
owning submission  to  the  house  of  Stuart  and  swear- 
ing allegiance  to  the  house  of  Hanover,  had  not  been 
repealed  a  century  ago.  They  were  forbidden  to  of- 
ficiate except  in  private  dwellings,  and  then  only  for 
four  persons  besides  those  of  the  household ;  or,  if  in 
an  uninhabited  building,  for  a  number  not  exceeding 
four.1  In  many  rural  places  their  houses  of  worship 
were  burnt  by  military  detachments,  and  in  towns 
where  burning  was  unsafe,  they  were  shut  up  or  de- 
molished. While  these  severe  laws  against  them  had 
not  been  repealed,  their  edge  had  worn  away,  and 
they  had  become  almost  wholly  inoperative,  so  that 
new  churches  were  erected,  and  larger  assemblies 
gathered. 

In  the  year  1775,  the  Rev.  John  Skinner  (after- 
wards bishop)  was  invited  to  fill  a  vacancy  in  the  city 
of  Aberdeen,  and  such  was  his  zeal  in  his  holy  calling 
that  his  charge,  from  being  composed  of  but  three 
hundred  people,  had  increased  so  much  in  twelve 
months  that  additional  accommodation  was  needed. 
"But  in  1776,  even  the  idea  of  erecting  an  ostensible 
church-like  place  of  worship  dared  not  be  cherished 
by  Scotch  Episcopalians.  Hence  was  Mr.  Skinner 
'obliged  to  look  out  for  some  retired  situation,  down 
a  close,  or  little  alley,  and  there,  at  his  own  indi- 
vidual expense,  to  erect  a  large  dwelling-house ;  the 
two  upper  floors  of  which,  being  fitted  up  as  a  chapel, 
were  devoted  to  the  accommodation  of  his  daily  in- 

1  A  clergyman  violating  these  laws  was  liable,  for  the  first  offense, 
to  six  months'  imprisonment,  and  for  the  second,  to  transportation  for 
life. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  145 

creasing  flock,  and  the  two  under  floors  to  the  resi- 
dence of  his  family." l 

This  large  dwelling-house  was  erected  in  Long-acre, 
a  narrow  lane  of  the  city,  where  public  carriages 
never  passed,  and  in  its  sequestered  chapel  the  Rev. 
SAMUEL  SEABURY,  D.  D.,  was  publicly  consecrated 
on  Sunday,  the  14th  of  November,  1784,  by  Robert 
Kilgour,  Primus,  assisted  by  Bishops  Arthur  Petrie 
and  John  Skinner.  The  service  was  not  performed 
in  secret  and  with  bated  breath.  It  was  performed 
"in  the  presence  of  a  considerable  number  of  re- 
spectable clergymen  and  a  great  number  of  laity," 
and  the  sermon  preached  on  the  occasion  was  after- 
wards printed  and  extensively  circulated.2  The  last 
four  verses  of  the  ninetieth  Psalm,  in  the  old  ver- 
sion of  Tate  and  Brady,  were  sung  at  the  conclusion 
of  the  sermon,  and  were  as  applicable  to  the  de- 
pressed condition  of  the  Scottish  Church  as  to  the  in- 
fant communion  in  America :  — 

"  To  satisfy  and  cheer  our  souls, 

Thy  early  mercy  send ; 
That  we  may  all  our  days  to  come 
In  joy  and  comfort  spend. 

"  Let  happy  times,  with  large  amends, 

Dry  up  our  former  tears, 
Or  equal,  at  the  least,  the  term 
Of  our  afflicted  years. 

"  To  all  thy  servants,  Lord,  let  this 
Thy  wondrous  work  be  known ; 

1  Annals  of  Scottish  Episcopacy,  pp.  16,  17. 

2  Two  editions  were  printed,  one  in  Edinburgh,  the  other  in  London, 
the  latter  on  fine  paper,  small  quarto. 

10 


146  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

And  to  our  offspring  yet  unborn, 
Thy  glorious  power  be  shown. 

"  Let  Thy  bright  rays  upon  us  shine, 

Give  Thou  our  work  success ; 
The  glorious  work  we  have  in  hand, 
Do  Thou  vouchsafe  to  bless." 

The  documents  connected  with  the  consecration, 
though  long,  and  before  given  to  the  public,  are  too 
valuable  and  shed  too  much  light  upon  the  precise 
history  of  the  whole  affair,  not  to  be  reproduced  in 
this  place.  They  were  recorded  in  the  "  Minute- 
Book  of  the  College  of  Bishops  in  Scotland,"  and  a 
duplicate  of  the  original  Concordate  and  of  the  letter 
to  the  clergy  of  Connecticut,  upon  vellum,  came  to 
this  country,  and  both  are  still  carefully  preserved. 

SYNOD  1784. 

In  the  name  of  the  holy  and  undivided  Trinity.     Amen. 

The  American  States  having  been  by  the  Legislature  of 
Great  Britain  declared  independent,  the  Christians  of  the 
Episcopal  persuasion  in  the  State  of  Connecticut,  who  had 
long  been  anxiously  desirous  to  have  a  valid  and  purely 
ecclesiastical  Episcopacy  established  among  them,  thought 
they  had  now  a  favorable  opportunity  of  getting  this  their 
desire  effected. 

With  this  view,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  Seabury,  one  of  the 
Episcopal  clergy  in  that  State,  was  sent  over  to  England 
with  ample  certificates  of  his  piety,  abilities,  and  learning, 
and  fitness  for  the  Episcopal  office,  and  recommendations 
by  his  brethren,  both  in  Connecticut  and  New  York,  to  the 
Archbishops  of  Canterbury  and  York,  requesting  that  he 
might  be  consecrated  for  Connecticut.  After  a  long  stay  in 
England  and  fruitless  application  for  consecration,  Dr.  Sea- 
bury  wrote  and  made  application  to  the  Bishops  of  Scotland, 
who,  after  having  seriously  considered  the  matter,  readily 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  147 

concurred  to  encourage  and  promote  the  proposal.  In  conse- 
quence of  this,  Dr.  Seabury  came  to  Scotland ;  and  having 
notified  his  arrival,  a  day  was  fixed  for  his  consecration,  and 
the  place  appointed  was  Aberdeen.  On  Saturday,  the  13th 
of  November  of  the  year  of  our  Lord  1784,  the  following 
Bishops,  viz :  The  Right  Rev.  Mr.  Robert  Kilgour,  Bishop 
of  Aberdeen  and  Primus ;  the  Right  Rev.  Mr.  John  Skin- 
ner, his  coadjutor  ;  and  the  Right  Rev.  Mr.  Arthur  Petrie, 
Bishop  of  Ross  and  Moray  (the  Right  Rev.  Mr.  Charles 
Rose,  Bishop  of  Dunblane,1  having  previously  signified  his 
assent,  and  excused  his  absence  by  reason  of  his  state  of 
health  and  great  distance),  convened  at  Aberdeen,  where 
Dr.  Seabury  met  them,  and  laid  before  them  the  following 
letters  and  papers,  viz  :  (1.)  An  attested  copy  of  a  letter 
from  the  clergy  of  Connecticut  to  the  Archbishop  of  York, 
recommending  Dr.  Seabury  in  very  strong  terms,  and  re- 
questing he  might  be  consecrated  for  Connecticut.  (2.)  An- 
other copy  of  a  letter  from  the  clergy  of  New  York  to  both 
the  Archbishops,  signifying  their  concurrence,  and  highly 
approving  of  the  measure.  (8.)  A  full  and  ample  testimo- 
nial from  the  clergy  of  Connecticut  and  New  York,  jointly 
certifying  Dr.  Seabury's  learning,  abilities,  prudence,  and 
zeal  for  religion,  and  that  they  believed  him  to  be  every  way 
qualified  for  the  sacred  office  of  a  Bishop.  (4.)  A  letter 
from  the  Committee  of  the  clergy  in  Connecticut  to  Dr. 
Seabury,  acquainting  him  that  they  had  made  application 
to  the  Assembly  of  the  State  of  Connecticut  as  to  what  pro- 
tection might  be  expected  for  a  Bishop  in  that  State  if  they 
should  be  able  to  procure  one.  That  their  application  met 
with  a  degree  of  candor  and  attention  beyond  their  expecta- 
tion ;  and  that  the  opinion  of  the  leading  members  of  the 
Assembly  appeared  to  coincide  fully  with  theirs  in  respect 
of  the  need,  propriety,  and  prudence  of  such  a  measure. 
That  these  members  told  them  they  had  passed  a  law  con- 
cerning the  Episcopal  Church,  and  invested  her  with  all  the 

3  The  Scottish  bishops  at  this  time  were  reduced  to  these  four,  and 
their  presbyters  numbered  but  forty-two. 


148  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

legal  powers  and  rights  that  is  intended  by  their  constitu- 
tion to  give  to  any  denomination.  That  the  protection  asked 
for  was  necessarily  included  in  the  act ;  that  let  a  Bishop 
come  ;  when  he  is  there  he  will  stand  upon  the  same  ground 
that  the  rest  of  the  clergy  do,  or  the  Church  at  large. 
That  the  Legislature  of  the  State  would  be  so  far  from  tak- 
ing any  umbrage,  that  in  this  transaction  the  Bishops  would 
meet  their  generous  wishes,  and  do  a  thing  for  which  they 
would  have  their  applause.  (5.)  A  letter  from  the  Commit- 
tee of  Convention  in  Connecticut  to  Dr.  Seabury,  amongst 
other  things,  signifying  their  reliance  on  his  zeal  and  forti- 
tude to  prosecute  the  affair  in  such  way  as  he  can,  and  beg- 
ging he  will  remember  that,  however  glad  they  shall  be  to 
see  him,  and  wish  speed  to  the  opportunity  that  may  enable 
them  to  bid  him  a  happy  welcome,  yet  that  his  coming  a 
Bishop  will  only  prevent  its  being  an  unhappy  meeting.  (6.) 
A  letter  from  Mr.  Jarvis,  Secretary  of  the  Committee,  to 
Dr.  Seabury,  accompanying  the  above  letter,  wherein  Mr. 
Jarvis  says,  You  may  depend  upon  it  you  will  be  kindly 
treated  in  this  State,  let  your  ordination  come  from  what 
quarter  it  will.  (7.)  An  attested  copy  of  the  above  men- 
tioned Act  of  the  State  of  Connecticut  for  securing  the 
rights  of  conscience  in  matters  of  religion  to  Christians  of 
every  denomination,  passed  in  the  January  session,  1783. 

The  said  Bishops  thus  convened,  after  reading  and  con- 
sidering these  papers,  and  conversing  at  full  length  with 
Dr.  Seabury,  were  fully  satisfied  of  his  fitness  to  be  pro- 
moted to  the  Episcopate,  and  of  the  reasonableness  and  pro- 
priety of  the  request  of  these  papers;  and,  therefore,  the 
day  following,  being  Sunday,  the  14th  of  the  said  month  of 
November,  after  morning  prayers,  and  a  sermon  suitable  to 
the  occasion,  preached  by  Bishop  Skinner,  they  proceeded 
to  the  consecration  of  the  said  Dr.  Samuel  Seabury  in  the 
said  Bishop  Skinner's  Chapel  in  Aberdeen,  and  he  was  then 
and  there  duly  consecrated  with  all  becoming  solemnity  by 
the  said  Right  Rev.  Mr.  Robert  Kilgour,  Mr.  Arthur  Petrie, 
and  Mr.  John  Skinner,  in  the  presence  of  a  considerable 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  149 

number  of  respectable  clergymen  and  a  great  number  of 
laity,  on  which  occasion  all  testified  great  satisfaction.1  On 
Monday,  the  15th,  a  Concordate  betwixt  the  Episcopal 
Church  in  Scotland  and  that  in  Connecticut  was  formed  and 
agreed  upon  by  the  Bishops  of  Scotland  and  Bishop  Seabury, 
to  their  mutual  satisfaction  ;  and  two  duplicates  thereof, 
wrote  upon  vellum,  were  duly  signed  and  sealed  by  all  the 
four.  One  duplicate,  together  with  the  above  mentioned 
letters  and  papers  respecting  Dr.  Seabury,  was  kept  by  the 
Bishops  of  Scotland,  to  be  preserved  among  the  records ;  and 
the  other  double,  together  with  a  letter  from  the  Bishops  of 
Scotland  to  the  clergy  of  Connecticut,  wrote  also  upon  vel- 
lum, and  duly  signed  and  sealed,  was  delivered  to  Bishop 
Seabury :  and  so  the  Synod  broke  up.  Copies  of  the  Con- 
cordate  and  letter  are  herein  inserted  and  are  as  follows  :2 — 

1  IN  DEI  NOMINE.     Amen. 

Omnibus  ubique  Catholicis  per  Presentes  pateat,  Nos  Robertum  Kil- 
gour  Miseratione  Divina  Episcopum  Aberdonien.  Arthur-urn  Petrie  Epis- 
copum  Rossen  et  Moravien  et  Joannis  Skinner  Episcopum  Coadjutorem, 
Mysteria  Sacra  Domini  nostri  Jesu  Christi  in  Oratoris  supradicti  Joannis 
Skinner  apud  Aberdoniam  celebrantes,  Divini  Numinis  Praesidio  fretos 
(presentibus  tarn  e  Clero,  quam  e  Populo  Testibus  idoneis)  Samuelem 
Seabury  Doctorem  Divinitatis.  sacro  Presbyteratus  Ordine  jam  decora- 
turn,  ac  Nobis  prse  Vitas  integritate,  Morum  probitate,  et  Orthodoxia 
commendatum,  et  ad  docendum  et  regendum  aptum  et  idoneum,  ad  sa- 
crum et  sublimem  Episcopatus  Ordinem  promovisse,  et  rite  ac  canonice, 
secundum  Morem  et  Ritus  Ecclesiaa  Scoticanas,  Consecrasse,  Die  Novem- 
bris  Decimo  Quarto,  Anno  -ZErae  Christianas  Millesimo  septingentesimo 
octagesimo  quarto.  In  cujus  rei  Testimoniurn,  Instrumento  huic  (Chiro- 
graphis  nostris  prius  munito)  Sigilla  nostra  apponi  mandavimus. 

ROBERTUS  KILGOUR  Episcopus  et  Primus.     [L.  s.] 
ARTHURUS  PETRIE  Episcopus.  [L.  s.] 

IOANNES  SKINNER  Episcopus.  [L.  s.] 

2  See  The  Scottish  Ecclesiastical  Journal,  October  16,  1851. 


150  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 


CONCORDATS. 

IN  THE  NAME  OF  THE  HOLY  AND  UNDIVIDED  TBINITY, 
FATHER,  SON,  AND  HOLY  GHOST,  ONE  GOD,  BLESSED 
FOE  EVEE.  AMEN. — 

The  wise  and  gracious  Providence  of  this  merciful  God, 
having  put  it  into  the  hearts  of  the  Christians  of  the  Epis- 
copal persuasion  in  Connecticut  in  North  America,  to  desire 
that  the  Blessings  of  a  free,  valid  and  purely  Ecclesiastical 
Episcopacy,  might  be  communicated  to  them,  and  a  Church 
regularly  formed  in  that  part  of  the  western  world  upon  the 
most  ancient,  and  primitive  model :  And  application  having 
been  made  for  this  purpose,  by  the  Reverend  Dr>  Samuel 
Seabury,  Presbyter  in  Connecticut,  to  the  Right  Reverend 
the  Bishops  of  the  Church  in  Scotland :  The  said  Bishops 
having  taken  this  proposal  into  their  serious  Consideration, 
most  heartily  concurred  to  promote  and  encourage  the  same, 
as  far  as  lay  in  their  power ;  and  accordingly  began  the  pious 
and  good  work  recommended  to  them,  by  complying  with 
the  request  of  the  Clergy  in  Connecticut,  and  advancing  the 
said  Dr<  Samuel  Seabury  to  the  high  order  of  the  Episcopate ; 
at  the  same  time  earnestly  praying  that  this  work  of  the 
Lord  thus  happily  begun  might  prosper  in  his  hands,  till  it 
should  please  the  great  and  glorious  Head  of  the  Church,  to 
increase  the  number  of  Bishops  in  America,  and  send  forth 
more  such  Laborers  into  that  part  of  his  Harvest.  —  Ani- 
mated with  this  pious  hope,  and  earnestly  desirous  to  estab- 
lish a  Bond  of  peace,  and  holy  Communion,  between  the 
two  Churches,  the  Bishops  of  the  Church  in  Scotland,  whose 
names  are  underwritten,  having  had  full  and  free  Conference 
with  Bishop  Seabury,  after  his  Consecration  and  Advance- 
ment as  aforesaid,  agreed  with  him  on  the  following  Arti- 
cles, which  are  to  serve  as  a  Concordate,  or  Bond  of  Union, 
between  the  Catholic  remainder  of  the  ancient  Church  of 
Scotland,  and  the  now  rising  Church  in  the  State  of  Con- 
necticut. — 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  151 

Art.  Ist-  They  agree  in  thankfully  receiving,  and  humbly 
and  heartily  embracing  the  whole  Doctrine  of  the  Gospel,  as 
revealed  and  set  forth  in  the  holy  Scriptures  :  and  it  is  their 
earnest  and  united  Desire  to  maintain  the  analogy  of  the 
common  Faith  once  delivered  to  the  Saints,  and  happily  pre- 
served in  the  Church  of  Christ,  thro'  his  divine  power  and 
protection,  who  promised  that  the  Gates  of  Hell  should 
never  prevail  against  it. 

Art.  Hd-  They  agree  in  believing  this  Church  to  be  the 
mystical  Body  of  Christ,  of  which  he  alone  is  the  Head,  and 
supreme  Governour,  and  that  under  him,  the  chief  ministers 
or  Managers  of  the  affairs  of  this  spiritual  Society,  are  those 
called  Bishops,  whose  Exercise  of  their  sacred  Office  being 
independent  on  all  Lay  powers,  it  follows  of  consequence, 
that  their  spiritual  Authority,  and  Jurisdiction  cannot  be  af- 
fected by  any  Lay-Deprivation. 

Art.  IIId'  They  agree  in  declaring  that  the  Episcopal 
Church  in  Connecticut  is  to  be  in  full  Communion  with  the 
Episcopal  Church  in  Scotland ;  it  being  their  sincere  Resolu- 
tion to  put  matters  on  such  a  footing  as  that  the  Members  of 
both  Churches  may  with  freedom  and  safety  communicate 
with  either,  when  their  Occasions  call  them  from  the  one 
Country  to  the  other :  Only  taking  Care  when  in  Scotland 
not  to  hold  Communion  in  sacred  Offices  with  those  persons, 
who  under  pretence  of  Ordination  by  an  English,  or  Irish 
Bishop,  do,  or  shall  take  upon  them  to  officiate  as  Clergy- 
men in  any  part  of  the  National  Church  of  Scotland,  and 
whom  the  Scottish  Bishops  cannot  help  looking  upon,  as 
schismatical  Intruders,  designed  only  to  answer  worldly  pur- 
poses, and  uncommissioned  Disturbers  of  the  poor  Remains 
of  that  once  flourishing  Church,  which  both  their  predeces- 
sors and  they  have  under  many  difficulties,  laboured  to  pre- 
serve pure  and  uncorrupted  to  future  Ages. 

Art.  IV.  With  a  view  to  the  salutary  purpose  mentioned 
in  the  preceding  Article,  they  agree  in  desiring  that  there 
may  be  as  near  a  Conformity  in  Worship  and  Discipline 
established  between  the  two  Churches,  as  is  consistent  with 


152  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

the  different  Circumstances  and  Customs  of  Nations  :  And 
in  order  to  avoid  any  bad  Effects  that  might  otherwise  arise 
from  political  Differences,  they  hereby  express  their  earnest 
Wish  and  firm  Intention  to  observe  such  prudent  Generality 
in  their  public  Prayers,  with  respect  to  these  points,  as  shall 
appear  most  agreeable  to  Apostolic  Rules,  and  the  practice 
of  the  primitive  Church. 

Art.  V.  As  the  Celebration  of  the  holy  Eucharist,  or  the 
Administration  of  the  Sacrament  of  the  Body  and  Blood  of 
Christ,  is  the  principal  Bond  .of... Union  among  Christians,  as 
well  as  the  most  solemn  Act  of  Worship  in  the  Christian 
Church,  the  Bishops  aforesaid  agree  in  desiring  that  there 
"may  be  as  little  Variance  here  as  possible.  And  tho'  the 
Scottish  Bishops  are  very  far  from  prescribing  to  their  Breth- 
ren in  this  matter,  they  cannot  help  ardently  wishing  that 
Bishop  Seabury  would  endeavour  all  he  can  consistently  with 
peace  and  prudence,  to  make  the  Celebration  of  this  venera- 
ble Mystery  conformable  to  the  most  primitive  Doctrine  and 
practice  in  that  respect :  Which  is  the  pattern  the  Church 
of  Scotland  has  copied  after  in  her  Communion  office,  and 
which  it  has  been  the  Wish  of  some  of  the  most  eminent 
Divines  of  the  Church  of  England,  that  she  also  had  more 
closely  followed,  than  she  seems  to  have  done  since  she  gave 
up  her  first  Reformed  Liturgy  used  in  the  Reign  of  King 
Edward  VI.,  between  which,  and  the  form  used  in  the 
Church  of  Scotland,  there  is  no  Difference  in  any  point, 
which  the  primitive  Church  reckoned  essential  to  the  right 
Ministration  of  the  holy  Eucharist.  In  this  capital  Article 
therefore  of  the  Eucharistic  Service  in  which  the  Scottish 
Bishops  so  earnestly  wish  for  as  much  Unity  as  possible, 
Bishop  Seabury  also  agrees  to  take  a  serious  View  of  the 
Communion  office  recommended  by  them,  and  if  found 
agreeable  to  the  genuine  Standards  of  Antiquity,  to  give  his 
Sanction  to  it,  and  by  gentle  methods  of  Argument  and  per- 
suasion, to  endeavour,  as  they  have  done,  to  introduce  it  by 
degrees  into  practice  without  the  Compulsion  of  Authority 
on  the  one  side,  or  the  prejudice  of  former  Custom  on  the 
other. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  153 

Art.  VI.  It  is  also  hereby  agreed  and  resolved  upon  for 
the  better  answering  the  purposes  of  this  Concordate,  that  a 
brotherly  fellowship  be  henceforth  maintained  between  the 
Episcopal  Churches  in  Scotland  and  Connecticut,  and  such  a 
mutual  Intercourse  of  Ecclesiastical  Correspondence  carried 
on,  when  Opportunity  offers,  or  Necessity  requires  as  may 
tend  to  the  Support  and  Edification  of  both  Churches. 

Art.  VII.  The  Bishops  aforesaid  do  hereby  jointly  de- 
clare, in  the  moil"  solemn  manner,  that  in  the  whole  of  this 
Transaction  they  have  nothing  else  in  view,  but  the  Glory 
of  God,  and  the  Good  of  his  Church ;  And  being  thus  pure 
and  upright  in  their  Intentions,  they  cannot  but  hope  that 
all  whom  it  may  concern,  will  put  the  most  fair  and  candid 
construction  on  their  Conduct,  and  take  no  Offence  at  their 
feeble  but  sincere  Endeavours  to  promote  what  they  believe 
to  be  the  Cause  of  Truth  and  of  the  common  Salvation. 

In  Testimony  of  their  Love  to  which,  and  in  mutual  good 
Faith  and  Confidence,  they  have  for  themselves,  and  their 
Successors  in  Office  cheerfully  put  their  names  and  Seals  to 
these  presents  at  Aberdeen,  this  fifteenth  day  of  November, 
in  the  year  of  our  Lord,  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and 
eighty-four. 

ROBERT  KILGOUR,  Bishop  $  Primus.     [L.  s.] 
ARTHUR  PETRIE,  Bishop.  [L.  s.] 

JOHN  SKINNER,  JR.,  Bishop.  [L.  s.] 

SAMUEL  SEABURY,  Bishop.  [L.  s.] 

The  following  letter  from  the  bishops  of  Scotland 
"to  the  Episcopal  Clergy  in  Connecticut,  in  North 
America,"  is  copied  from  the  original  document  on 
vellum,  now  in  the  archives  of  the  Diocese  of  Con- 
necticut, and,  like  the  Concordate,  is  in  the  handwrit- 
ing of  Bishop  Skinner. 

REVEREND  BRETHREN,  AND  WELL-BELOVED  IN  CHRIST, 
—  Whereas  it  has  been  represented  to  us  the  Bishops  of 
the  Episcopal  Church  of  Scotland,  by  the  Reverend  Dr. 


154  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

Samuel  Seabury,  your  fellow  Presbyter  in  Connecticut,  that 
you  are  desirous  to  have  the  blessings  of  a  free,  valid,  and 
purely  Ecclesiastical  Episcopacy  communicated  to  you,  and 
that  you  do  consider  the  Scottish  Episcopacy  to  be  such  in 
every  sense  of  the  word ;  and  the  said  Dr.  Seabury  having 
been  sufficiently  recommended  to  us,  as  a  person  very  fit  for 
the  Episcopate  ;  and  having  also  satisfied  us  that  you  were 
willing  to  acknowledge  and  submit  to  him  as  your  Bishop, 
when  properly  authorized  to  take  the  charge  of  you  in  that 
character  ;  KNOW,  therefore,  DEARLY  BELOVED,  that  WE 
the  BISHOPS,  and  under  Christ,  the  governours,  by  regular 
succession,  of  the  Episcopal  Church  of  Scotland,  considering 
the  reasonableness  of  your  request,  and  being  entirely  satis- 
fied with  the  recommendations  in  favour  of  the  said  Dr. 
Samuel  Seabury,  HAVE  accordingly  PROMOTED  him  to  the 
high  order  of  the  Episcopate,  by  the  laying  on  of  our  hands, 
and  have  thereby  invested  him  with  proper  powers  for  gov- 
erning and  performing  all  Episcopal  offices  in  the  Church  in 
Connecticut.  And  having  thus  far  complied  with  your  de- 
sire, and  done  what  was  incumbent  on  us,  to  keep  up  the 
Episcopal  succession  in  a  part  of  the  Christian  Church, 
which  is  now  by  mutual  Agreement  loosed  from,  and  given 
up  by  those  who  once  took  the  charge  of  it,  permitt  us 
therefore,  Reverend  Brethren,  to  request  your  hearty  and 
sincere  endeavours  to  further  and  carry  on  the  good  work  we 
have  happily  begun.  To  this  end,  we  hope  you  will  receive 
and  acknowledge  the  Right  Reverend  Bishop  Seabury  as  your 
Bishop  and  spiritual  governour,  that  you  will  pay  him  all 
due  and  canonical  obedience  in  that  sacred  character,  and 
reverently  apply  to  him  for  all  Episcopal  offices,  which  you, 
or  the  people  committed  to  your  pastoral  care,  may  stand  in 
need  of  at  his  hands,  till  thro'  the  goodness  of  God,  the  num- 
ber of  Bishops  be  increased  among  you,  and  the  State  of 
Connecticut  be  divided  into  separate  Districts  or  Dioceses, 
as  is  the  case  in  other  parts  of  the  Christian  world.  This 
Recommendation,  we  flatter  ourselves,  you  will  take  in  good 
part  from  the  governours  of  a  Church  which  cannot  be  sus- 


OF    SAMUEL   SEABURY.  155 

pected  of  aiming  at  Supremacy  of  any  kind,  or  over  any 
people.  JJnacquainted  as  we  are  with  the  politicks  of  Na- 
tions, and  under  no  temptation  to  interfere  in  matters  for- 
eign to  us,  we  have  no  other  Object  in  view  but  the  interest 
of  the  Mediator's  kingdom,  no  higher  ambition  than  to  do  our 
duty  as  messengers  of  the  Prince  of  Peace.  In  the  discharge 
of  tins  duty,  the  example  we  wish  to  copy  after  is  that  of  the 
Primitive  Church,  while  in  a  similar  situation,  unconnected 
wlth^jand,  unsupported  by  the  temporal  Powers.  On  this 
footing,  it  is  our  earnest  desire  that  the  Episcopal  Church 
in  Connecticut  be  in  full  communion  with  the  Episcopal 
Church  in  Scotland,  as  we,  the  underwritten  Bishops,  for 
ourselves,  and  our  successors  in  office,  agree  to  hold  commun- 
ion with  Bishop  Seabury  and  his  successors,  as  practised  in 
the  various  provinces  of  the  Primitive  Church,  in  all  the 
fundamental  Articles  of  Faith,  and  by  mutual  intercourse  of 
ecclesiastical  correspondence  and  brotherly  fellowship,  when 
opportunity  offers,  or  necessity  requires.  Upon  this  plan, 
which,  we  hope,  will  meet  your  joint  approbation,  and  ac- 
cording to  this  standard  of  primitive  practice,  a  CONCORD  ATE 
has  been  drawn  up  and  signed  by  us,  the  Bishops  of  the 
Church  in  Scotland,  on  the  one  part,  and  by  Bishop  Sea- 
bury  on  the  other,  the  Articles  of  which  are  to  serve  as  a 
bond  of  union  between  the  Catholic  Remainder  of  the  an- 
cient Church  of  Scotland,  and  the  now  rising  Church  in  the 
State  of  Connecticut.  Of  this  Concordate  a  copy  is  here- 
with sent  for  your  satisfaction  ;  and  after  having  duly 
weighed  the  several  Articles  of  it,  we  hope  you  will  find 
them  all  both  expedient  and  equitable,  dictated  by  a  spirit 
of  Christian  meekness,  and  proceeding  from  a  pure  regard  to 
regularity  and  good  order.  As  such  we  most  earnestly  rec- 
ommend them  to  your  serious  attention,  and  with  all  broth- 
erly love  intreat  your  hearty  and  sincere  compliance  with 
them. 

A  Concordate  thus  established  in  mutual  good  faith  and 
confidence,  will,  by  the  blessing  of  God,  make  our  Ecclesias- 
tical union  firm  and  lasting:  And  we  have  no  other  desire 


156  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

but  to  render  it  conducive  to  that  peace,  and  agreeable  to 
that  truth,  which  it  ever  has  been,  and  shall  be,  our  study  to 
seek  after  and  cultivate.  And  may  the  God  of  Peace  grant 
you  to  be  like-minded.  May  He,  who  is  the  Great  High 
Priest  of  our  profession,  the  Shepherd  and  Bishop  of  our 
souls,  prosper  these  our  endeavours  for  the  propagation  of 
his  Truth  and  Righteousness :  May  He  graciously  accept  our 
imperfect  services,  grant  success  to  our  good  designs,  and 
make  His  Church  to  be  yet  glorious  upon  earth,  and  the  joy 
of  all  lands.  To  his  divine  Benediction  we  heartily  com- 
mend you,  your  Flocks,  and  your  Labors,  and  are,  Rever- 
end Sirs,  Your  affectionate  Brethren  and  Fellow-servants  in 
Christ, 

ROBERT  KILGOUR,  Bishop  $  Primus. 

ARTHUR  PETRIE,  Bishop. 

JOHN  SKINNER,  JR.,  Bishop. 

ABERDEEN,  November  15,  1784. 

Bishop  Seabury  preached  in  the  upper  room1  at 
Aberdeen,  on  the  afternoon  of  the  day  of  his  conse- 
cration, and  produced  a  favorable  impression.  His 
earnestness  and  manner  of  address,  accompanied  with 
gesticulations,  were  somewhat  new  to  the  Scotch 

1  The  building  in  which  the  consecration  took  place  is  not  now  stand- 
ing. In  the  minute-book  of  St.  Andrew's  Chapel,  under  date  of  May 
13,  1794,  is  an  entry  "  that  the  present  chapel,  dwelling-house  and  ground 
in  Long-acre,  belonging  to  Bishop  Skinner,  be  purchased  from  him,  and 
that  with  the  materials  of  said  house,  as  far  as  they  can  be  useful,  a  new 
chapel  be  built  on  said  piece  of  ground  for  ....  780  people."  See  The 
Scottish  Guardian,  January  30,  1880. 

The  "new  chapel  "  was  erected  on  the  site  of  the  former  dwelling- 
house  and  chapel,  and,  like  its  predecessor,  was  never  consecrated.  It 
was  sold  to  the  Wesleyans  when  the  congregation  removed,  in  1817,  from 
Long-acre  to  the  present  St.  Andrew's  Church,  in  King  Street.  The 
foundations  for  a  new  chancel  to  this  church  .were  begun  in  January  last, 
and  it  has  been  proposed  to  place  in  it, .with  the  aid  of  contributions 
from  this  country,  a  suitable  memorial  of  the  consecration  of  Bishop 
Seabury,  as  a  testimony  of  the  benefit  derived  from  the  Scotch  Church 
in  giving  us  the  first  American  bishop.  See  Appendix  B. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  157 

Episcopalians.  "  My  father/'  says  the  author1  of 
"  An  Ecclesiastical  History  of  Scotland/'  "  then  a 
boy,  was  present,  and  has  often  spoken  to  me  about 
it.  He  recollected  particularly  that  the  bishop  used 
more  gesture  than  was  common  in  Scotland,  and  that 
he  waved  a  white  handkerchief  while  he  preached." 

A  deep  and  holy  interest  was  felt  in  the  results  of 
the  consecration,  and  many  blessings  were  invoked, 
both  publicly  and  privately,  upon  the  person  and 
work  of  the  first  American  bishop.  He  was  not  for- 
gotten after  leaving  the  chapel  in  Long-acre.  The 
Kev.  Alexander  Jolly,  afterwards  Bishop  of  Moray, 
compiled  a  special  prayer  which  may  have  been  used 
in  the  services  of  the  Church,  and  which  was  in  these 
words  :  — 

Almighty  God,  our  Heavenly  Father,  who  hast  pur- 
chased to  thyself  an  universal  Church  by  the  precious  Blood 
of  thy  dear  Son,  and  by  whose  Spirit  it  is  sanctified  and 
united  into  one  body,  of  which  Jesus  Christ  is  the  Head,  let 
the  virtue  and  efficacy  of  His  death  and  passion  be  extended 
far  and  wide ;  let  thy  ways  be  known  upon  earth  and  thy 
saving  health  among  all  nations  :  Bless  and  prosper  the  en- 
deavors of  all,  who,  by  thy  divine  aid,  labor  and  endeavor  to 
propagate  thy  truth  and  promote  the  interest  and  enlarge- 
ment of  the  Church  and  kingdom  of  Christ.  In  an  especial 
manner  bless  and  prosper  the  labors  and  endeavors  of  the 
Bishops  and  laity  of  that  portion  of  the  Church,  whereof  I 
am  an  unworthy  member,  and  of  him  who  by  thy  divine 
Providence,  according  to  the  institution  of  thy  dearly  be- 
loved Son  Jesus  Christ,  is  now  commissioned  and  appointed 
to  promote  the  interests  of  that  Church  and  kingdom  in  the 
western  parts  of  the  habitable  world.  Grant  him  a  safe  and 
prosperous  journey  and  voyage,  and  a  happy  arrival  in  that 
country.  Inspire  him,  and  us,  and  all  who  are,  or  shall  be 
1  Dr.  Grub,  MS.  Letter,  November  20,  1879. 


158  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

commissioned  for  that  great  work,  with  an  apostolical  zeal 
for  thy  glory  in  maintaining  that  doctrine,  government,  wor- 
ship, and  discipline,  entire,  pure,  and  unblemished,  which 
Thou  hast  committed  to  their  trust.  Give  us  grace  to  con- 
sider from  whom  we  are  sent,  and  whose  successors  we  are, 
and  endue  us  with  the  apostolical  spirit  of  courage  and  bold- 
ness, together  with  such  a  holy  and  heavenly  suffering  frame 
of  mind,  that  we  may  be  ready,  not  only  to  be  bound,  but  to 
die  for  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  for  the  doctrines  which  He  hath 
revealed,  for  the  institutions  which  He  hath  appointed,  and 
for  the  principles  and  rights  which  He  hath  left  to  his 
Church.  Then  shall  thy  people  praise  Thee,  O  God :  Then 
shall  Kings  fall  down  before  Thee  and  all  nations  do  Thee 
service. 

Hear  us,  O  Lord,  we  beseech  Thee,  and  receive  these  our 
prayers  and  intercessions,  which  in  faith  and  charity  we  pre- 
sent unto  Thee  through  his  merits  alone,  who  is  the  Head  of 
the  Catholic  Church  and  the  High  Priest  of  our  prof essibn, " 
Jesus  Christ.  Amen.1 

Thirty-two  years  later,  when  Bishop  Jolly  was  an 
old  man,  "  whose  business  now,"  to  use  his  own  words, 
"  after  a  long  day,  was  to  say  his  penitential  prayers 
and  go  to  bed  in  the  dust,"  he  received  the  degree  of 
Doctor  of  Divinity  from  Washington  (Trinity)  Col- 
lege, Hartford.  It  was  an  entirely  unexpected  honor, 
which  "  humbled  him  under  a  sense  of  his  own  empti- 
ness," and  in  writing  to  Bishop  Kemp,  of  Maryland, 
to  thank  him  for  his  good  offices  in  obtaining  it,  he 
referred  with  delight  to  its  source  and  recalled  an  in- 
cident of  the  consecration  in  the  upper  room  at  Aber- 
deen :  "  Connecticut  has  been  a  word  of  peculiar  en- 
dearment to  me  since  the  happy  day  when  I  had  the 
honor  and  joy  of  being  introduced  to  the  first  ever 

1  Walker's  Memoir  of  Bishop  Jolly,  pp.  35,  36,  and  MS.  Letter,  Au- 
gust 19,  1879. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  159 

memorable  bishop  of  that  highly  favored  see,  whose 
name  ever  excites  in  my  heart  the  warmest  venera- 
tion. With  a  glad  and  thankful  heart,  I  witnessed 
his  consecration,  held  the  Book  while  the  solemn 
words  were  pronounced,  and  received  his  first  Episco- 
pal benediction." 

On  his  return  to  London,  Bishop  Seabury  stopped 
at  Edinburgh  and  must  have  preached  in  that  city, 
where  his  friend  Dr.  Myles  Cooper  and  others  were 
ready  to  congratulate  him  on  the  accomplishment  of 
his  mission.  He  addressed  a  letter  to  the  Rev.  Jona- 
than Boucher,  who,  like  himself,  took  the  side  of  the 
crown  in  the  war  of  the  Revolution,  and  conscien- 
tiously believed  that  the  resistance  of  the  colonies 
was  unwise  and  against  their  best  interests.  In  con- 
sequence of  his  loyalty,  he  was  ejected  from  his  par- 
ish in  Maryland  and  returned  to  England,  of  which 
he  was  a  native,  and  was  appointed  vicar  of  Ep- 
som, in  the  county  of  Surrey,  and,  as  will  be  seen 
hereafter,  made  himself  useful  to  Bishop  Seabury 
and  served  as  a  medium  of  communication  with  his 
friends.  The  letter  gives  ample  proof  of  the  bishop's 
spirit  and  self-sacrifice,  and  mentions  that,  failing  to 
obtain  consecration  in  England,  "it  was  natural  in 
the  next  instance  to  apply  to  Scotland,  whose  Episco- 
pacy, though  now  under  a  cloud,  is  the  very  same,  in 
every  ecclesiastical  sense,  with  the  English."  It  is 
copied  in  full  from  the  MS.  Letter-Book. 

EDINBURGH,  December  3,  1784. 

MY  VEKY  DEAR  SIE,  —  I  promised  to  write  you  as  soon 
as  a  certain  event  took  place,  and  I  have  not  till  now  made 
good  my  promise.  In  truth,  I  have  not  had  opportunity  to 
collect  my  thoughts  on  the  subject  on  which  I  wished  to 


160  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

write  you ;  and  even  now,  I  expect  every  minute  to  be  called 
upon,  and  probably  this  letter  will  go  unfinished  to  you. 

Dr.  Chandler,  I  suppose,  has  informed  you  that  my  conse- 
cration took  place  on  the  14th  of  November  at  Aberdeen.  I 
found  great  candor,  piety,  and  good  sense  among  the  Scotch 
Bishops  and  also  among  the  clergy  with  whom  I  have  con- 
versed. The  Bishops  expect  the  clergy  of  Connecticut  will 
form  their  own  Liturgy  and  Offices  ;  yet  they  hope  the  Eng- 
lish Liturgy,  which  is  the  one  they  use,  will  be  retained,  ex- 
cept the  Communion  Office,  and  that  they  wish  should  give 
place  to  the  one  in  Edward  the  Sixth's  Prayer  Book.  This 
matter  I  have  engaged  to  lay  before  the  clergy  of  Connect- 
icut, and  they  will  be  left  to  their  own  judgment  which 
to  prefer.  Some  of  the  congregations  in  Scotland  use  one 
and  some  the  other  Office ;  but  they  communicate  with  each 
other  on  every  occasion  that  offers.  On  political  subjects 
not  a  word  was  said.  Indeed,  their  attachment  to  a  par- 
ticular family  is  wearing  off,  and  I  am  persuaded  a  little 
good  policy  in  England  would  have  great  effect  here. 

Upon  the  whole,  I  know  nothing,  and  am  conscious  that  I 
have  done  nothing  that  ought  to  interrupt  my  connection 
with  the  Church  of  England.  The  Church  in  Connecticut 
has  only  done  her  duty  in  endeavoring  to  obtain  an  Episco- 
pacy for  herself,  and  I  have  only  done  my  duty  in  carrying 
her  endeavors  into  execution.  Political  reasons  prevented 
her  application  from  being  complied  with  in  England.  It 
was  natural  in  the  next  instance  to  apply  to  Scotland,  whose 
Episcopacy,  though  now  under  a  cloud,  is  the  very  same,  in 
every  ecclesiastical  sense,  with  the  English. 

His  Grace  of  Canterbury  apprehended  that  my  obtaining 
consecration  in  Scotland  would  create  jealousies  and  schisms 
in  the  Church,  that  the  Moravian  Bishops  in  America  would 
be  hereby  induced  to  ordain  clergymen,  and  that  the  Phila- 
delphian  clergy  would  be  encouraged  to  carry  into  effect 
their  plan  of  constituting  a  nominal  Episcopacy  by  the  joint 
suffrages  of  clergymen  and  laymen. 

But  when  it  is  considered  that  the  Moravian  Bishops  can- 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  161 

not  ordain  clergymen  of  our  Church,  unless  requested  so  to 
do,  and  that  when  there  shall  be  a  Bishop  in  America,  there 
will  be  no  ground  on  which  to  make  such  a  request  ;__and 
that  the  Philadelphia!!  plan  was  only  proposed  on  the  sup- 
position of  real  and  absolute  necessity ;  which  necessity  can- 
not exist  when  there  is  a  Bishop  resident  in  America,  every 
apprehension  of  this  kind  must,  I  think,  vanish  and  be  no 
more.  My  own  inclination  is  to  cultivate  as  close  a  connec- 
tion and  union  with  the  Church  of  England,  as  that  Church 
and  the  political  state  of  the  two  countries  shall  permit.  ^  I 
have  grown  up  and  lived  hitherto  under  the  influence  of 
the  highest  veneration  for  and  attachment  to  the  Church  of 
England,  and  in  the  service  of  the  Society,  and  my  hope  is 
to  promote  the  interest  of  that  Church  with  greater  effect 
than  ever,  and  to  establish  it  in  the  full  enjoyment  of  its 
whole  government  and  discipline. 

And  I  think  it  highly  probable  that  I  may  be  of  real  serv- 
ice to  this  country,  by  promoting  a  connection  with  that 
country  in  religious  matters  without  any  breach  of  duty  to 
the  State  in  which  I  shall  live.  I  cannot  help  considering 
it  as  an  instance  of  bad  policy,  that  my  application  for  con- 
secration was  rejected  in  England;  and  I  intend  no  offense 
when  I  say,  that  I  think  the  policy  would  still  be  worse 
should  the  Society  on  this  occasion  discharge  me  from  their 
service,  which  his  Grace  of  York,  in  my  last  interview  with 
him,1  said  would  certainly  be  the  case.  That  indeed  would 
make  a  schism  between  the  two  Churches,  and  put  it  out  of 
my  power  to  preserve  that  friendly  intercourse  and  commun- 
ion which  I  earnestly  wish.  It  might  also  bring  on  explana- 
tions which  would  be  disagreeable  to  me,  and,  I  imagine,  to 
the  Society  also.  However,  should  the  Society  itself  be 
obliged  to  take  such  a  step,  though  I  shall  be  sorry  for  it, 

1  Before  leaving  for  Scotland  he  called  on  the  archbishop,  .and  frankly 
stated  to  him  the  object  of  his  journey.  "  Why,  Dr.  Seabury!  "  he  ex- 
claimed, "  do  you  not  know  that  these  Scottish  bishops  are  Jacobites?  " 
"  Yes,  my  Lord,"  was  the  quick  reply,  "and  if  report  says  true,  your 
Grace's  non-juring  principles  are  the  brightest  jewel  in  your  Grace's 
mitre."  The  archbishop  smiled  and  was  silent. 
11 


162  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

and  hurt  by  it,  I  shall  not  be  dejected.  If  my  father  and 
mother  forsake  me,  if  the  Governors  of  the  Church  and  the 
Society  discard  me,  I  shall  still  be  that  humble  pensioner  of 
Divine  Providence  which  I  have  been  through  my  whole  life. 
God,  I  trust,  will  take  me  up,  continue  his  goodness  to  me, 
and  bless  my  endeavors  to  serve  the  cause  of  his  infant 
Church  in  Connecticut.  I  trust,  sir,  that  it  is  not  the  loss  of 
<£50  per  annum  that  I  dread,  —  though  that  is  an  object  of 
some  importance  to  a  man  who  has  nothing,  —  but  the  conse- 
quences that  must  ensue,  the  total  alienation  of  regard  and 
affection. 

You  can  make  such  use  of  this  letter  as  you  think  proper. 
If  I  can  command  so  much  time,  I  will  write  to  Dr.  Morice 
on  the  subject.  If  not,  I  will  see  him  as  soon  as  I  return  to 
London,  which  will  be  in  ten  days. 

Please  to  present  my  regards  to  Mr.  Stevens  and  all 
friends,  and  believe  me  to  be,  with  the  greatest  esteem,  your 
affectionate,  humble  servant,  S.  S. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  163 


CHAPTER  X. 

ARRIVAL  IN  LONDON,  AND  NEW  PERPLEXITIES ;  OPPOSITION  OF  GRAN- 
VILLE  SHARPE  AND  OTHERS;  LETTER  TO  THE  CLERGY  OF  CON- 
NECTICUT, AND  FRIENDSHIP  OF  AMERICAN  LOYALISTS;  PECUNIARY 
SUPPORT,  AND  LETTER  TO  THE  VENERABLE  SOCIETY;  BISHOP 
SKINNER'S  INTEREST,  AND  LETTERS  OF  DR.  CHANDLER. 

A.  D.   1785. 

AFTER  his  arrival  in  London  from  Scotland,  Bishop 
Seabury  began  to  make  preparations  for  returning  to 
America.  He  had  succeeded  in  obtaining  consecra- 
tion, but  his  path  was  not  yet  cleared  of  trials  and 
perplexities.  There  were  those  high  in  authority  in 
England  who  manifested  dissatisfaction  with  the  step 
and  presumed  to  think  that  it  had  been  taken  too 
hurriedly.  Dr.  Home,  then  Dean  of  Canterbury  and 
the  commentator  on  the  Psalms,  wrote  to  him  on  the 
3d  of  January,  1785,  and  said:  "  You  do  me  but  jus- 
tice in  supposing  me  a  hearty  friend  to  the  American 
Episcopacy.  I  am  truly  sorry  that  our  cabinet  here 
would  not  save  you  the  trouble  of  going  to  Scotland 
for  it.  There  is  some  uneasiness  about  it,  I  find, 
since  it  is  done.  It  is  said  you  have  been  precipitate. 
I  should  be  inclined  to  think  so  too,  had  any  hopes 
been  left  of  obtaining  consecration  from  England. 
But  if  none  were  left,  what  could  you  do  but  what 
you  have  done  ?" 

To  this  letter  Bishop  Seabury  in  reply,  after  briefly 


164  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

referring  to  obstacles  which  have  been  noted  in  these 
pages,  remarked :  "  God  grant  that  I  may  never  have 
greater  cause  to  condemn  myself  than  in  the  con- 
duct of  this  business.  I  have  endeavored  to  get  it 
forward  easily  and  quietly,  without  noise,  party,  or 
heat ;  and  I  cannot  but  be  pleased  that  no  fault  but 
precipitancy  is  brought  against  me.  That  implies 
that  I  have  needlessly  hurried  the  matter,  but  is  an 
acknowledgment  that  the  measure  was  right  in  it- 
self." And  it  showed  his  kindly  spirit  when  he  went 
on  to  affirm :  "  From  education  and  habit,  as  well  as 
from  a  sense  of  her  real  excellence,  I  have  a  sincere 
veneration  for  the  Church  of  England,  and  I  am 
grieved  to  see  the  power  of  her  bishops  restrained  by 
her  connection  with  the  state.  Had  it  been  other- 
wise, my  application,  I  am  confident,  would  have  met 
with  a  very  different  reception." 

A  man  so  distinguished  in  the  cause  of  suffering 
humanity  as  Granville  Sharpe,  grandson  of  Dr.  John 
Sharpe,  Archbishop  of  York,  was  opposed  on  political 
grounds  to  the  non-juring  bishops  in  Scotland,  and 
attempted  to  throw  discredit  on  the  validity  of  the 
Scottish  consecrations.  His  biographer  states  that 
Dr.  Seabury,  on  coming  to  England,  called  on  the 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury  for  consecration,  and  as 
his  Grace  hesitated,  fearing  to  offend  the  Americans, 
with  whom  peace  had  just  been  established,  and 
wished  time  to  consider  the  request,  "  Dr.  Seabury 
very  abruptly  left  the  room,  saying,  If  your  Grace 
will  not  grant  me  consecration,  I  know  where  to  ob- 
tain it ;  and  immediately  set  off  for  Aberdeen."  I 

A  statement  so  wide  of  the  truth  was  properly  cor- 

1  Prince  Hoare's  Memoirs  of  the  Life  of  Granville  Sharpe,  p.  213. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  165 

rected  years  ago.  Mr.  Sharpe,  being  a  loyal  Eng- 
lishman, was  desirous,  and  afterwards  used  his  good 
offices  to  this  end,  that  the  Episcopacy  for  America 
should  be  obtained  from  the  bishops  of  his  own 
Church.  Five  days  after  the  consecration  of  Dr. 
Seabury,  he  wrote  to  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
and  expressed  his  regret  at  the  limitation  of  the  late 
act,  authorizing  only  the  ordination  of  priests  and 
deacons  for  independent  States.  "I  should  not," 
said  he,  "  have  troubled  your  Grace  with  so  long  a 
letter  on  this  subject,  had  I  not  lately  been  informed 
that  an  American  clergyman,  who  calls  himself  a 
LOYALIST,  is  actually  gone  down  to  Scotland,  with  a 
view  of  obtaining  consecration  from  some  of  the  re- 
maining NON-JURING  Bishops  in  that  kingdom,  who 
still  affect  among  themselves  a  nominal  jurisdiction 
from  the  Pretender's  appointment ;  and  he  proposes, 
afterwards,  to  go  to  America,  in  hopes  of  obtaining 
jurisdiction  over  several  EPISCOPAL  CONGREGATIONS 
in  Connecticut."1 

It  has  already  been  mentioned  that  Dr.  Seabury 
found  unexpected  opposition  at  Aberdeen  from  Dr. 
Smith,  and  not  long  after  reaching  London,  he  re- 
ceived a  letter  from  Bishop  Skinner,  in  which  he 
referred  again  to  the  course  of  that  gentleman,  es- 
pecially in  the  Episcopal  conventions  in  the  United 
States,  and  expressed  the  hope  that  he  had  "overshot 
his  mark  in  America,  as  his  warm  friend,"  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Alexander  Murray,  had  "  lately  done  in  London 
by  his  opposition  to  him.  These  bustling  spirits,"  he 
continued,  "  often  hurt  their  own  cause  by  an  over- 
keenness  to  promote  it."  Dr.  Murray  was  a  loyalist, 

1  Hoare's  Memoirs,  etc.,  p.  213. 


166  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

a  clergyman  of  Reading,  Penn.,  and  fled  to  Eng- 
land, where  in  his  zeal  to  further  the  interests  of  Dr. 
Smith,  who  aspired  to  the  Episcopate  of  Maryland, 
he  disparaged  Bishop  Seabury  and  his  work,  and  rep- 
resented that  it  was  not  to  have  been  expected  that 
the  English  bishops  would  consecrate  him  "  upon  the 
recommendation  of  a  few  missionaries  in  their  ob- 
scure private  capacity." 

Dr.  Berkeley  was  not  altogether  satisfied  with  the 
documents  which  were  signed  at  Aberdeen,  and  in 
the  same  letter,  Bishop  Skinner  quoted  the  words  he 
had  written  to  him  thus :  "  With  all  due  deference 
to  the  prelates  who  have  signed  the  Concordate  and 
pastoral  letter,  I  beg  leave  to  observe  that  (from  my 
knowledge  both  of  the  principles  and  prejudices  of 
the  American  Protestant  Episcopalians)  some  parts  of 
that  Concordate  and  letter,  apparently  calculated  for 
the  conduct  of  a  bishop  to  be  employed  in  the  first 
publication  of  the  gospel,  rather  than  as  Bishop  Sea- 
bury  is  to  be  occupied,  may  occasion  schisms  where 
unity  is  most  desirable." 

The  parts  to  which  he  excepted  were  not  given, 
and  it  is  supposed  that  he  referred  to  the  articles 
concerning  the  Eucharistic  service.  Bishop  Skinner 
felt  that  the  cautious  way  in  which  everything  was 
worded  ought  to  convince  any  unprejudiced  person 
that  while  they  had  a  high  regard  for  primitive  doc- 
trine and  practice,  their  desire  for  peace  and  unity 
was  equally  fervent,  and  they  had  no  intention  of 
creating  schisms.  "  If  you  think,"  he  added,  "  it  will 
answer  any  good  end  to  communicate  this  to  the 
worthy  doctor,  you  may  take  a  convenient  opportu- 
nity of  doing  it,  as  I  do  not  choose,  for  obvious  rea- 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  167 

sons,  to  enter  into  any  altercations  with  him  on  the 
subject,  unless  he  had  desired  a  further  explanation 
of  the  passages  to  which  he  alluded." l 

Six  weeks  had  now  passed  away  since  his  conse- 
cration, and  Bishop  Seabury  had  been  waiting  to 
arrange  his  affairs,  and  fix  upon  a  time  for  his  de- 
parture, before  writing  to  the  clergy  of  Connecticut. 
They  knew,  however,  by  his  last  letter,  the  step  he 
was  about  to  take,  and  they  would  not,  therefore, 
have  been  surprised  to  hear  at  any  moment  of  his 
arrival  in  this  country  clothed  with  apostolic  author- 
ity. The  following  is  his  first  pastoral  letter  to  them, 
dated 

LONDON,  January  5,  1785. 
MY    VERY    DEAR    AND    WORTHY    FRIENDS,  —  It    IS    with 

great  pleasure  that  I  now  inform  you,  that  my  business  here 
is  perfectly  completed,  in  the  best  way  that  I  have  been  able 
to  transact  it.  Your  letter,  and  also  a  letter  from  Mr. 
Learning,  which  accompanied  the  act  of  your  Legislature, 
certified  by  Mr.  Secretary  Wyllys,  overtook  me  at  Edin- 
burgh, in  my  journey  to  the  north,  and  not  only  gave  me 
great  satisfaction,  but  were  of  great  service  to  me. 

I  met  with  a  very  kind  reception  from  the  Scotch  Bishops, 
who  having  read  and  considered  such  papers  as  I  laid  before 
them,  consisting  of  the  copies  of  my  original  letters  and  tes- 
timonial, and  of  your  subsequent  letters,  declared  themselves 
perfectly  satisfied,  and  said  that  they  conceived  themselves 
called  upon,  in  the  course  of  God's  providence,  without  re- 
gard to  any  human  policy,  to  impart  a  pure,  valid,  and  free 
Episcopacy  to  the  western  world;  and  that  they  trusted 
that  God,  who  had  begun  so  good  a  work,  would  water  the 
infant  Church  in  Connecticut  with  his  heavenly  grace,  and 
protect  it  by  his  good  providence,  and  make  it  the  glory 
and  pattern  of  the  pure  Episcopal  Church  in  the  world ;  and 
1  MS.  Letter-Book  under  date  January  29,  1785. 


168  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

that  as  it  was  freed  from  all  incumbrance  arising  from  con- 
nection with  civil  establishments  and  human  policy,  the  fut- 
ure splendor  of  its  primitive  simplicity  and  Christian  piety 
would  appear  to  be  eminently  and  entirely  the  work  of  God 
and  not  of  man.  On  the  14th  of  Nov.  my  consecration  took 
place,  at  Aberdeen  (520  miles  from  hence).  It  was  the 
most  solemn  day  I  ever  passed ;  God  grant  I  may  never  for- 
get it ! 

I  "now  only  wait  for  a  good  ship  in  which  to  return. 
None  will  sail  before  the  last  of  February  or  first  of  March. 
The  ship  Triumph,  Capt.  Stout,  will  be  among  the  first. 
With  this  same  Stout,  commander,  and  in  the  Triumph,  I 
expect  to  embark,  and  hope  to  be  in  New  York  some  time 
in  April ;  your  prayers  and  good  wishes  will,  I  know,  at- 
tend me. 

A  new  scene  will  now,  my  dear  Gentlemen,  in  all  proba- 
bility, open  in  America.  Much  do  I  depend  on  you  and  the 
other  good  Clergymen  in  Connecticut,  for  advice  and  sup- 
port, in  an  office  which  will  otherwise  prove  too  heavy  for 
me.  Their  support,  I  assure  myself  I  shall  have ;  and  I 
flatter  myself  they  will  not  doubt  of  my  hearty  desire,  and 
earnest  endeavor,  to  do  everything  in  my  power  for  the  wel- 
fare of  the  Church,  and  promotion  of  religion  and  piety. 
You  will  be  pleased  to  consider  whether  New  London  be  the 
proper  place  for  me  to  reside  at;  or  whether  some  other 
place  would  do  better.  At  New  London,  however,  I  sup- 
pose they  make  some  dependence  upon  me.  This  ought  to 
be  taken  into  the  consideration.  If  I  settle  at  New  London, 
I  must  have  an  assistant.  Look  out,  then,  for  some  good 
clever  young  gentleman  who  will  go  immediately  into  dea- 
con's orders,  and  who  would  be  willing  to  be  with  me  in 
that  capacity.  And  indeed  I  must  think  it  a  matter  of  pro- 
priety, that  as  many  worthy  candidates  be  in  readiness  for 
orders  as  can  be  procured.  Make  the  way,  I  beseech  you,  as 
plain  and  easy  for  me  as  you  can. 

Since  my  return  from  Scotland,  I  have  seen  none  of  the 
Bishops,  but  I  have  been  informed  that  the  step  I  have 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  169 

taken  has  displeased  the  two  Archbishops,  and  it  is  now  a 
matter  of  doubt  whether  I  shall  be  continued  on  the  Socie- 
ty's list.  The  day  before  I  set  out  on  my  northern  journey, 
I  had  an  interview  with  each  of  the  Archbishops,  when  my 
design  was  avowed  ;  so  that  the  measure  was  known,  though 
it  has  made  no  noise. 

My  own  poverty  is  one  of  the  greatest  discouragements  I 
haveT~  Two  years'  absence  from  my  family,  and  expensive 
residence  here,  has  more  than  expended  all  I  had.  But  in 
so  good  a  cause,  and  of  such  magnitude,  something  must  be 
risked  by  somebody.  To  my  lot  it  has  fallen ;  I  have  done 
it  cheerfully,  and  despair  not  of  a  happy  issue. 

This,  I  believe,  is  the  last  time  I  shall  write  to  you  from 
this  country.  Will  you  then  accept  your  Bishop's  blessing, 
and  hearty  prayers  for  your  happiness  in  this  world  and  the 
next  ?  May  God  bless  also,  and  keep,  all  the  good  Clergy  of 
Connecticut ! 

I  am,  reverend  and  dear  brethren,  your  affectionate 
brother,  and  very  humble  servant, 

SAMUEL  SEABURY. 
REV.  MESSRS.  LEAMING,  JARVIS,  AND  HUBBARD. 

Among  the  American  loyalists  in  England,  who 
looked  with  favor  upon  the  consecration  of  Dr.  Sea- 
bury,  and  tried  to  smooth  the  way  for  his  reception 
in  the  States,  was  the  Rev.  Jacob  Duche.  At  the 
outbreak  of  the  Revolution  he  was  on  the  side  of  the 
colonies,  and  was  rector  of  Christ  and  St.  Peter's 
Churches,  Philadelphia.  Writing  from  the  Asylum 
at  Lambeth,  of  which  he  was  chaplain,  December  1, 
1784,  to  his  friend,  the  Rev.  Wm.  White,  who  had 
been  one  of  his  assistants,  and  succeeded  him  as  rec- 
tor after  his  flight  from  this  country,  he  spoke  of  the 
consecration  of  Dr.  Seabury,  and  said  it  was  the  sin- 
cere wish  of  all  who  desired  to  see  the  American 


170  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

Episcopal  Church  formed  on  the  model  of  the  Church 
of  England,  that  he  should  be  received  with  open 
arms  by  the  American  clergy,  and  thus  prevent  di- 
vision and  the  growth  of  sects.  "  Much  more  I  have 
to  say  to  you  on  this  subject,"  said  Mr.  Duche. 
"  Your  American  Bishop,  for  so  I  must  now  call  him, 
is  a  SCHOLAR,  a  GENTLEMAN,  and,  I  am  happy  to  be 
able  to  say  (what  I  only  believe  to  be  true),  a  REAL 
CHRISTIAN.  I  hope  you  will  take  the  earliest  oppor- 
tunity of  calling  together  a  Convention,  or  Synod,  or 
Convocation,  or  some  general  Ecclesiastical  meeting 
from  the  several  States,  to  receive  him,  and  at  the 
same  time,  to  fix  upon  an  Ecclesiastical  constitution 
for  your  future  union  and  comfort.  I  have  not  time 
to  add  more.  I  shall  write  again  by  Capt.  Mercer,  as 
I  expect  Bishop  Seabury  in  London  the  17th  of  this 
month." 

Dr.  Inglis,  who  was  then  in  London,  joined  Mr. 
Duche  in  recommending  this  course,  and  communi- 
cated his  views  to  Mr.  White  in  a  separate  letter. 
He  had  been  his  correspondent  in  this  country,  and 
on  the  22d  of  October,  1783,  when  he  was  hurrying 
preparations  to  embark  for  England,  with  no  hope  of 
ever  returning  to  settle  in  any  of  the  States,  he  wrote 
him  a  long  and  candid  letter,  disapproving  of  the 
manner  in  which  he  proposed  to  organize  the  Church 
in  America,  and  showing  with  much  wisdom  and  dis- 
interestedness the  plan  which  ought  to  be  adopted  to 
make  it  conform  to  primitive  truth  and  Apostolic  or- 
der. Political  questions  were  entirely  put  aside,  and 
the  plea  of  necessity  as  stated  in  the  pamphlet  of  Mr. 
White  was  as  stoutly  opposed  by  Dr.  Inglis  as  it  had 
been  by  the  Episcopal  clergy  of  Connecticut. 


OF    SAMUEL   SEABURY.  171 

These  letters  undoubtedly  had  their  influence  in 
shaping  the  course  of  subsequent  events.  The  con- 
secration of  Dr.  Seabury  was  not  recognized  in  Lon- 
don, for  reasons  obvious  to  those  who  understand  the 
connection  of  Church  and  state.  No  English  clergy- 
man, however  friendly  he  might  be  to  his  mission, 
could  ask  him  to  preach  for  him,  and  if  it  had  been 
tendered  him,  he  would  not,  as  a  matter  of  prudence 
and  propriety,  have  accepted  an  invitation.  He  con- 
sidered himself,  and  was  considered  by  others,  as  a 
foreign  bishop,  and  under  the  law  as  it  then  stood, 
he  was  shut  out  from  officiating  in  any  public  serv- 
ice. 

His  detention  in  England  afforded  him  the  oppor- 
tunity to  consult  his  personal  friends  and  interest 
them  in  his  support  after  reaching  Connecticut. 
Should  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel 
see  fit  to  withdraw  the  annual  stipend  which  had 
been  allowed  him  as  one  of  its  missionaries  from  the 
date  of  his  ordination,  he  would  be  left  with  little  or 
nothing  to  maintain  the  dignity  of  his  office  or  to 
meet  the  wants  of  his  family.  He  seems  to  have 
apprehended  that  this  might  be  the  case,  and  took 
pains  to  prevent  it,  if  possible.  The  following  noble 
letter  to  the  secretary  of  the  venerable  Society  is  at 
once  a  concise  history  of  his  mission  to  England  and 
a  pathetic  appeal  for  future  remembrance  and  con- 
sideration. A  transcript  in  the  bishop's  own  hand- 
writing was  made  in  his  letter-book,  from  which  our 
copy  is  taken :  — 

LONDON,  February  27,  1785. 

REV.  SIB, — When  the  Articles  of  the  late  peace  were 
published  in  America,  it  is  natural  to  suppose  that  the  mem- 


172  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

bers  of  the  Church  of  England  must  have  been  under  many 
anxious  apprehensions  concerning  the  fate  of  the  Church. 
The  great  distance  between  England  and  America  had  al- 
ways subjected  them  to  many  difficulties  in  the  essential  ar- 
ticle of  ordination;  and  the  independency  of  that  country 
gave  rise  to  new  ones  that  appeared  insurmountable.  Can- 
didates for  Holy  Orders  could  no  longer  take  the  oath  re- 
quired in  the  English  Ordination  Office,  and  without  doing 
so,  they  could  not  be  ordained.  The  Episcopal  Church  in 
America  must,  under  such  circumstances,  cease,  whenever  it 
should  please  God  to  take  their  present  ministers  from  them, 
unless  some  adequate  means  could  be  adopted  to  procure  a 
regular  succession  of  Clergymen.  Under  these  impressions 
the  Clergy  of  Connecticut  met  together  as  soon  as  they  pos- 
sibly could,  and  on  the  most  deliberate  consideration,  they 
saw  no  remedy  but  the  actual  settlement  of  a  Bishop  among 
them.  They  therefore  determined  to  make  an  effort  to  pro- 
cure that  blessing  from  the  English  Church,  to  which  they 
hoped,  under  every  change  of  civil  polity,  to  remain  united, 
and  commissioned  the  Rev.  Mr.  Abraham  Jarvis,  of  Middle- 
town,  in  Connecticut,  to  go  to  New  York  and  consult  such 
of  the  Clergy  there  as  they  thought  prudent  on  the  subject, 
and  to  procure  their  concurrence.  He  was  also  directed  to 
try  to  prevail  on  Rev.  Mr.  Learning  or  me  to  undertake  a 
voyage  to  England,  and  endeavor  to  obtain  Episcopal  Con- 
secration for  Connecticut.  Mr.  Learning  declined  on  ac- 
count of  his  age  and  infirmities ;  and  the  Clergy  who  were 
consulted  by  Mr.  Jarvis  gave  it  as  their  decided  opinion 
that  I  ought,  in  duty  to  the  Church,  to  comply  with  the  re- 
quest of  the  Connecticut  Clergy.  Though  I  foresaw  many 
and  great  difficulties  in  the  way,  yet  as  I  hoped  they  might 
all  be  overcome,  and  as  Mr.  Jarvis  had  no  instruction  to 
make  the  proposal  to  any  one  besides,  and  was,  with  the 
other  Clergy,  of  opinion  the  design  would  drop  if  I  declined 
it,  I  gave  my  consent,  and  arrived  in  England  the  beginning 
of  July,  1783,  endeavoring,  according  to  the  best  of  my 
ability  and  discretion,  to  accomplish  the  business  on  which  I 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  173 

came.  It  would  be  disagreeable  to  me  to  recapitulate  the 
difficulties  which  arose  and  defeated  the  measure,  and  to  en- 
ter on  a  detail  of  my  own  conduct  in  the  matter  is  needless, 
as  his  Grace  of  Canterbury,  and  his  Grace  of  York,  with 
other  members  of  the  Society,  are  well  acquainted  with  all 
the  circumstances. 

Finding  at  the  end  of  the  last  Session  of  Parliament,  that 
no  permission  was  given  for  consecrating  a  Bishop  for  Con- 
necticut, or  any  of  the  American  States,  in  the  Act  enabling 
the  Lord  Bishop  of  London  to  ordain  foreign  candidates  for 
Deacon's  and  Priest's  orders;  and  understanding  that  a  req- 
uisition, or  at  least  a  formal  acquiescence  of  Congress,  or  of 
the  supreme  authority 'in  some  particular  State,  would  be 
expected  before  such  permission  would  be  granted ;  and  that 
a  diocese  must  be  formed,  and  a  stated  revenue  appointed 
for  the  Bishop,  previously  to  his  consecration,  I  absolutely 
despaired  of  ever  seeing  such  a  measure  succeed  in  England. 
I  therefore  thought  it  not  only  justifiable,  but  a  matter  of 
duty,  to  endeavor  to  obtain,  wherever  it  could  be  had,  a 
valid  Episcopacy  for  the  Church  in  Connecticut,  which  con- 
sists of  more  than  30,000  members.  I  knew  that  the  Bish- 
ops in  Scotland  derived  their  succession  from  England,  and 
that  their  Liturgy,  Doctrines,  and  Discipline  scarcely  differ 
from  those  of  the  English  Church.  And  as  only  the  Script- 
ural, or  purely  Ecclesiastical  power  of  Episcopacy  was 
wanted  in  Connecticut,  I  saw  no  impropriety  in  applying 
to  the  Scotch  Bishops  for  consecration.  If  I  succeeded,  I 
was  to  exercise  the  Episcopal  authority  in  Connecticut  out 
of  the  British  dominions,  and  therefore  could  cause  no  dis- 
turbance in  the  ecclesiastical  or  civil  state  of  this  country. 

The  reasons  why  this  step  should  be  taken  immediately 
appeared  also  to  me  to  be  very  strong.  Before  I  left  Amer- 
ica a  disposition  to  run  into  irregular  practices  had  showed 
itself;  for  some  had  proposed  to  apply  to  the  Moravian, 
some  to  the  Swedish  Bishops,  for  ordination ;  and  a  pam- 
phlet had  been  published  at  Philadelphia,  urging  the  ap- 
pointment of  a  number  of  Presbyters  and  Laymen  to  ordain 


174  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

Ministers  for  the  Episcopal  Church.  Necessity  was  pleaded 
as  the  foundation  of  all  these  schemes ;  and  this  plea  could 
be  effectually  silenced  only  by  having  a  resident  Bishop  in 
America. 

I  have  entered  into  no  political  engagements  in  Scotland, 
nor  were  any  ever  mentioned  to  me.  And  I  shall  return  to 
America,  bound  indeed  to  hold  communion  with  the  Episco- 
pal Church  of  Scotland,  because  I  believe  that,  as  I  do  the 
Church  of  England,  to  be  the  Church  of  Christ. 

It  is  the  first  wish  of  my  heart,  and  will  be  the  endeavor 
of  my  life,  to  maintain  this  unity  with  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, agreeably  to  those  general  laws  of  Christ's  Church, 
which  depend  not  on  any  human  power,  and  which  lay  the 
strongest  obligations  on  all  its  members  to  live  in  peace  and 
unity  with  each  other.  And  I  trust  no  obstacle  will  arise  or 
hinder  an  event  so  desirable  and  so  consonant  to  the  princi- 
ples of  the  Christian  religion,  as  the  union  of  the  Church  of 
England  and  the  Episcopal  Church  of  America  would  be. 
Such  a  union  must  be  of  great  advantage  to  the  Church  in 
America,  and  may  also  be  so  at  some  future  period  to  the 
Church  of  England.  The  sameness  of  religion  will  have  an 
influence  on  the  political  conduct  of  both  countries,  and  in 
that  view  may  be  an  object  of  some  consideration  to  Great 
Britain. 

How  far  the  venerable  Society  may  think  themselves  jus- 
tifiable in  continuing  me  their  Missionary,  they  only  can  de- 
termine. Should  they  do  so,  I  shall  esteem  it  as  a  i'avor. 
Should  they  do  otherwise,  I  can  have  no  right  to  complain. 
I  beg  them  to  believe  that  I  shall  ever  retain  a  grateful 
sense  of  their  favors  to  me  during  thirty-one  years  that  I 
have  been  their  Missionary ;  and  that  I  shall  remember  with 
the  utmost  respect  the  kind  attention  which  they  have  so 
long  paid  to  the  Church  in  that  country  for  which  I  am  now 
to  embark.  Very  happy  would  it  make  me  could  I  be  as- 
sured they  would  continue  that  attention,  if  not  in  the  same, 
yet  in  some  degree,  if  not  longer,  yet  during  the  lives  of 
their  present  Missionaries,  whose  conduct  in  the  late  commo- 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  175 

tion  has  been  irreproachable,  and  has  procured  esteem  to 
themselves  and  respect  to  that  Church  to  which  they  be- 
long. 

The  fate  of  individuals  is,  however,  of  inferior  moment 
when  compared  with  that  of  the  whole  Church.  Whenever 
the  Society  shall  wholly  cease  to  interest  itself  in  the  concerns 
of  religion  in  America,  it  will  be  a  heavy  calamity  to  the 
Church  in  that  country.  Yet  this  is  to  be  expected ;  and 
the  calamity  will  be  heavier,  if  proper  steps  be  not  previ- 
ously taken  to  secure  to  that  Church  various  property  of 
lands,  etc.,  in  the  different  States  (now,  indeed,  of  small 
value,  but  gradually  increasing),  to  which  the  Society  alone 
has  a  legal  claim.  It  is  humbly  submitted  to  them  how  far  it 
may  be  consistent  with  their  views  to  give  men  authority  to 
assert  and  secure  to  the  Church  there  the  lands  in  Vermont 
and  elsewhere.  This,  it  is  hoped,  might  now  be  easily  done, 
but  a  few  years  may  render  their  recovery  impracticable. 
The  Society  has  also  a  library  of  books  in  New  York,  which 
was  sent  thither  for  the  use  of  the  Missionaries  in  the  neigh- 
borhood. As  there  is  now  only  one  Missionary  in  that  State, 
and  several  in  Connecticut,  I  beg  leave  to  ask  their  permis- 
sion to  have  it  removed  into  Connecticut,  where  it  will  an- 
swer the  most  valuable  purposes,  there  being  no  library  of 
consequence  in  that  State  to  which  the  Clergy  can  resort  on 
any  occasion. 

Whatever  the  Society  may  determine  with  regard  to  me, 
I  hope  it  will  not  be  thought  an  impropriety  that  I  should 
correspond  with  them.  I  think  many  advantages  would 
arise  from  such  a  correspondence,  both  to  the  Church  and  to 
the  Society.  Their  interests  are  indeed  the  same,  and  I 
trust  that  the  Society  will  do  me  the  justice  to  believe,  that 
with  such  ability  as  I  have  and  such  influence  as  my  station 
may  give  me,  I  shall  steadily  endeavor  to  promote  the  inter- 
ests of  both. 

I  am,  with  the  greatest  respect  and  esteem,  Rev.  Sir,  your 
and  the  Society's  most  obedient  and  very  humble  servant, 

S.  S. 


176  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

The  secretary  of  the  Society,  Dr.  Morice,  briefly 
replied,  and,  without  recognizing  his  official  charac- 
ter, addressed  his  letter  "  To  the  Kev.  Dr.  Seabury, 
New  London,  Connecticut."  This,  too,  was  copied 
by  the  bishop  in  his  letter-book,  direction  and  all, 
and  ran  thus :  — - 

HATTON  GARDEN,  April  25,  1785. 

REV.  SIB,  —  Your  letter  of  February  27th  was  read  to 
the  Society,  etc.,  at  their  first  meeting  subsequent  to  my 
receiving  it. 

I  am  directed  by  the  Society  to  express  their  approbation 
of  your  service  as  their  Missionary,  and  to  acquaint  you  that 
they  cannot  consistently  with  their  charter  employ  any  Mis- 
sionaries except  in  the  plantations,  colonies,  and  factories  be- 
longing to  the  kingdom  of  Great  Britain ;  your  case  is  of 
course  comprehended  under  that  general  rule. 

No  decided  opinion  is  yet  formed  respecting  the  lands  you 
mention.  For  the  rest,  the  Society  without  doubt  will  al- 
ways readily  receive  such  information  as  may  contribute  to 
promote  their  invariable  object,  the  Propagation  of  the  Gos- 
pel in  Foreign  Parts. 

I  am,  Rev.  Sir,  your  affectionate  Brother  and  most  hum- 
ble Servant,  WM.  MOBICE,  Secretary. 

The  sermon  preached  by  Bishop  Skinner  at  the 
consecration  of  Dr.  Seabury  was  printed,  and  the  au- 
thor, who  desired  to  send  some  copies  of  it  to  the 
American  prelate,  wrote  to  Dr.  Chandler,  residing  at 
the  time  in  the  British  metropolis,  both  to  get  direc- 
tions and  to  invite  his  correspondence  upon  the  re- 
sult of  the  effort  to  establish  a  pure  and  primitive 
Episcopacy  in  the  western  world.  He  expected  that 
Bishop  Seabury,  on  his  arrival  in  this  country,  would 
fulfill  his  promise  and  write ;  "  But,"  said  he  to  Dr. 
Chandler,  "  as  you  will  perhaps  have  occasion  to 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  177 

hear  more  frequently  from  him,  I  shall  think  myself 
highly  obliged  to  you  for  any  intelligence  respecting 
him  or  his  affairs  which  you  may  be  pleased  to  com- 
municate. For,  besides  my  being  very  much  inter- 
ested in  his  matters,  from  a  similarity  of  office  and 
character,  the  short  time  I  had  the  pleasure  of  see- 
ing and  conversing  with  him  here  has  given  me  such 
a  high  opinion  of  his  personal  worth,  as  must  ever 
entitle  him  to  my  warmest  esteem  and  most  affec- 
tionate remembrance." 

Dr.  Chandler  dispatched  an  answer  to  this  letter  as 
follows,  from 

LONDON,  April  23,  1785. 

About  three  days  ago,  I  was  honored  with  your  very 
friendly  and  obliging  letter  of  the  first  instant.  I  feel  my- 
self greatly  indebted  to  my  excellent  friend,  Bishop  Sea- 
bury,  for  having  mentioned  me  in  such  a  manner  as  to  occa- 
sion the  offer  of  so  reputable  a  correspondence  as  is  presented 
in  your  letter ;  and  were  I  to  remain  in  a  situation  that 
favored  it,  I  should  embrace  it  with  all  thankfulness.  But 
I  am  soon  to  embark  for  America,  and  for  a  part  of  it 
where,  during  my  continuance  there,  I  shall  be  unable  to 
answer  your  expectations. 

You  may,  perhaps,  have  heard  that  after  having  been 
separated  eight  years  from  my  family,  which  I  left  in  New 
Jersey,  I  have  been  detained  here  two  years,  with  the  pros- 
pect of  being  appointed  to  the  superintendency  of  the 
Church  in  our  new  country.  This  business,  though  the  call 
for  it  is  most  urgent,  is  still  postponed ;  and  it  appears  to  be 
in  no  greater  forwardness  now  than  it  did  a  year  ago.  In 
the  mean  while  I  am  laboring  under  a  scorbutic  disorder, 
which  renders  a  sea-voyage  and  change  of  climate  immedi- 
ately necessary.  I  therefore  thought  proper  to  wait  upon 
the  archbishop  a  day  or  two  since,  to  resign  my  pretensions 
to  the  Nova  Scotia  Episcopate,  that  I  might  be  at  liberty  to 

12 


178  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

cross  the  Atlantic  and  visit  my  family,  consisting  now  of  a 
most  excellent  wife  and  three  amiable  daughters.  His  Grace 
would  not  hear  of  my  giving  up  my  claim  to  the  above-men- 
tioned appointment,  but  readily  consented  to  my  visiting 
my  family,  on  condition  that  I  would  hold  myself  in  readi- 
ness to  undertake  the  important  charge  whenever  I  might 
be  called  for,  which  I  promised  in  case  my  health  should 
admit  of  it.  Accordingly,  I  have  engaged  a  passage  in  a 
ship  bound  to  New  York,  which  is  obliged  to  sail  by  this 
day  fortnight.  By  this  migration  you  can  be  no  loser,  if 
you  will  be  pleased  in  my  stead  to  adopt  for  your  corre- 
spondent the  Rev.  Mr.  Boucher,  of  Paddington,  a  loyal 
clergyman  from  Maryland,  the  worthiest  of  the  worthy,  and 
one  of  the  most  confidential  friends  of  Bishop  Seabury.  I 
have  taken  the  liberty  of  showing  him  your  letter,  and  mak- 
ing him  the  proposal.  He  will  think  himself  happy  in  an- 
swering your  inquiries  from  time  to  time,  and  will,  as  a 
correspondent,  be  able  to  give  you  more  satisfaction  than  I 
could. 

I  have  often  expressed  my  wish  that  your  truly  valuable 
Consecration  Sermon  might  be  advertised  for  sale  in  this 
city.  If  this  had  been  done  while  the  occasion  was  fresh, 
I  am  persuaded  that  a  large  edition  would  have  sold,  and 
much  good  would  have  arisen  from  it.  I  am  of  opinion 
that,  late  as  it  now  is,  many  copies  would  still  be  called  for 
were  they  known  to  be  at  hand.  I  should  think  Mr.  Robin- 
son, of  Paternoster  Row,  might  be  properly  employed  in 
that  way,  who  has  mostly  published  for  Mr.  Jones  and 
sometimes  for  Dr.  Home.  By  the  bye,  it  gives  me  pleasure 
to  see  my  two  learned  friends  here  mentioned,  honored  with 
your  notice.  In  this  sermon  you  have  ably,  clearly,  and  un- 
answerably explained  the  origin  and  nature  of  ecclesiastical 
authority,  and  "  he  that  hath  ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear." 

This  is  a  subject  which  I  have  repeatedly  had  occasion  to 
consider  in  the  course  of  my  publications  in  defense  of  our 
claim  to  an  Episcopate,  and  I  am  ashamed  to  find  that  it  is 
so  little  understood  by  the  English  clergy  in  general. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  179 

Dr.  Seabury,  of  whom  you  cannot  have  so  high  an  opinion 
as  I  have,  because  you  are  not  so  well  acquainted  with  him, 
left  the  Downs  on  the  15th  of  last  month ;  on  the  19th  he 
was  sixty-five  leagues  west  of  the  Lizzard,  with  a  fair  pros- 
pect of  a  good  passage,  at  which  time  he  wrote  to  me.  It 
appears  from  the  late  letters  from  America  that  there  was 
great  impatience  for  his  arrival,  and  no  apprehension  of  his 
meeting  with  ill-treatment  from  any  quarter.  In  my  opin- 
ion, he  has  more  trouble  to  expect  from  a  certain  crooked- 
grained  false  brother  (of  whose  character  you  must  have 
some  knowledge),  than  from  any  other  person.  I  mean  Dr. 
S — th,  late  of  Philadelphia  College,  now  of  Maryland.  He 
is  a  man  of  abilities  and  application,  but  intriguing  and 
pragmatical.  His  principles,  with  regard  both  to  Church 
and  State,  if  he  has  any,  are  most  commodiously  flexible, 
yielding  not  only  to  every  blast,  but  to  the  gentlest  breeze 
that  whispers!  With  professions  of  great  personal  esteem 
for  Dr.  Seabury,  made  occasionally,  he  has  always  counter- 
acted and  opposed  him  as  far  as  he  dared,  and  I  doubt  not 
but  he  will  continue  to  oppose  him  in  his  Episcopal  charac- 
ter. He  will  be  able  to  do  this  more  effectually  if  he  suc- 
ceeds in  his  project  of  obtaining  consecration  himself,  with  a 
view  to  which  he  is  said  to  be  about  embarking  for  Britain. 
His  character  is  so  well  known  by  the  Bishops  here,  that  I 
trust  they  would  have  the  grace  to  reject  him,  even  were  he 
to  carry  his  point  with  the  ministry,  and  I  am  sure  there  is 
no  danger  of  his  imposing  upon  your  venerable  synod.  Be- 
fore I  was  aware  I  have  got  to  the  end  of  my  paper,  and 
must  now  take  my  leave,  but  I  hope  only  for  a  little  while ; 
for  wherever  or  however  Providence  may  dispose  of  me,  I 
shall  be  happy  in  any  opportunities  of  proving  myself  your 
very  respectful  and  obedient  servant.1 

When  Bishop  Seabury  was  about  to  sail  for  Amer- 
ica, Dr.  Chandler  put  into  his  hands  a  letter  ad- 
dressed to  their  mutual  friend  and  companion  in 

1  Annals  of  Scottish  Episcopacy,  pp.  44-48. 


180  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

former  tribulations,  Isaac  Wilkins,  Esq.  It  adds  noth- 
ing new  to  the  history  of  the  mission  to  England,  but 
it  confirms  the  statements  already  made,  and  shows 
how  the  scattered  loyalists  kept  up  the  remembrance 
of  each  other  and  watched  the  prospects  of  the  Epis- 
copal Church,  so  broken  and  cast  down  by  the  events 
of  the  Eevolution.  An  extract  from  the  letter,  which 
was  dated  London,  February  25,  1785,  may  well  be 
introduced  to  close  this  chapter :  — 

I  hope  that  you  may  happen  to  be  at  Halifax  when  this 
arrives  there,  both  for  your  own  sake  and  that  of  the  bearer, 
who  is  no  less  a  person  than  the  Bishop  of  Connecticut.  He 
goes  by  the  way  of  Nova  Scotia  for  several  reasons,  of  which 
the  principal  is  that  he  may  see  the  situation  of  that  part  of 
his  family,  which  is  in  that  quarter,  and  be  able  to  form  a 
judgment  of  the  prospects  before  them.  He  will  try  hard 
to  see  you,  but,  as  he  will  not  have  much  time  to  spare,  he 
fears  that  he  shall  not  be  able  to  go  to  Shelburne  in  quest 
of  you. 

You  were  acquainted  with  this  Bishop  and  his  adventures 
from  the  time  of  his  leaving  New  York  in  1783.  He  came 
home  with  strong  recommendations  to  the  two  Archbishops 
and  the  Bishop  of  London,  from  the  clergy  of  Connecticut, 
and  with  their  most  earnest  request  that  he  might  have  Epis- 
copal consecration  for  the  Church  in  that  State.  Though 
no  objections  could  arise  from  his  character,  the  Bishops  here 
thought  such  a  measure  would  be  considered  as  rash  and 
premature,  since  no  fund  had  been  established  for  his  sup- 
port, and  no  consent  to  his  admission  had  been  made  by  the 
States  ;  besides,  no  Bishop  could  be  consecrated  here  for  a 
foreign  country,  without  an  act  of  Parliament  to  dispense 
with  the  oaths  required  by  the  established  office.  These  dif- 
ficulties and  objections  continued  to  operate  through  the 
winter,  and  several  candidates  for  Priests'  orders,  who  had 
been  waiting  near  a  twelve-month,  were  about  going  over  to 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  181 

the  Continent  to  seek  for  ordination  in  some  foreign  Prot- 
estant Episcopal  Church.  At  length  a  short  act  was  ob- 
tained, authorizing  the  Bishop  of  London  and  his  substitutes 
to  dispense  with  the  aforesaid  oaths  in  the  ordination  of 
Priests  and  Deacons  for  the  American  States;  but  noth- 
ing was  said  in  it  about  the  consecration  of  Bishops.  The 
Minister,  it  seems,  was  fearful  that  opening  the  door  for  the 
consecration  of  Bishops  would  give  umbrage  to  the  Ameri- 
cans, and,  therefore,  every  prospect  of  success  here  was  at 
an  end. 

Dr.  Seabury,  with  his  wonted  spirit  and  resolution,  then 
thought  it  his  duty  to  apply  elsewhere,  and,  by  the  inter- 
vention of  a  friend,  consulted  the  Bishops  in  Scotland,  who 
were  equally  without  the  protection  and  the  restraint  of 
government.1 

1  History  of  the  Church  in  Westchester  County,  pp.  102,  103. 


182  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 


CHAPTER   XI. 

CONSECRATION  SERMON,  AND  OBJECTIONS  TO  IT  ;  LETTERS  OF  BISH- 
OPS LOWTH  AND  SKINNER  ;  CHARLES  WESLEY,  AND  HIS  OPINION  OF 
BISHOP  SEABURY;  MEETINGS  TO  ORGANIZE  THE  CHURCH  IN  MARY- 
LAND AND  PENNSYLVANIA;  CONVENTIONS  AT  NEW  BRUNSWICK  AND 
NEW  YORK;  TITLE  OF  THE  CHURCH,  AND  DR.  WHITE'S  INFLUENCE. 

A.  D.  1784-1785. 

ALTHOUGH  the  sermon  preached  at  the  consecra- 
tion of  Dr.  Seabmy  bore  not  on  its  title-page  the 
name  of  the  author,  it  attracted  unexpected  attention 
in  England.  Bishop  Skinner,  without  intending  to 
reflect  upon  the  position  of  the  English  Church,  drew 
a  picture  of  the  duty  of  those  situated  as  he  and  his 
colleagues  were,  and  said :  "  As  long  as  there  are  na- 
tions to  be  instructed  in  the  principles  of  the  gospel, 
or  a  Church  to  be  formed  in  any  part  of  the  inhab- 
ited world,  the  successors  of  the  Apostles  are  obliged, 
by  the  commission  which  they  hold,  to  contribute,  as 
far  as  they  can,  or  may  be  required  of  them,  to  the 
propagation  of  those  principles,  and  to  the  formation 
of  every  Church,  upon  the  most  pure  and  primitive 
model.  No  fear  of  worldly  censure  ought  to  keep 
them  back  from  so  good  a  work ;  no  connection  with 
any  state,  nor  dependence  on  any  government  what- 
ever, should  tie  up  their  hands  from  communicating 
the  blessings  of  that  kingdom  which  is  not  of  this 
world,  and  diffusing  the  means  of  salvation  by  a 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  183 

valid  and  regular  ministry,  wherever  they  may  be 
wanted." l 

The  consecration  of  Dr.  Seabury  was  noticed  in  a 
periodical  of  the  time,2  with  a  bad  and  unfriendly 
spirit,  and  things  were  said  about  it  which  brought 
forward  an  intelligent  and  able  defender  of  the  Scot- 
tish Episcopacy,  the  Rev.  George  Gleig,  who  was 
himself  afterwards  raised  to  the  highest  dignity  of 
the  Church.  The  anonymous  sermon  was  also  at- 
tacked by  friends  no  less  than  foes,  and  the  sharp 
and  perhaps  unbecoming  criticism  which  it  received 
at  the  hands  of  Mr.  Gleig  made  a  breach  between 
him  and  Bishop  Skinner  that  prevented  them  for  a 
score  of  years  from  harmoniously  cooperating  with 
each  other  in  ecclesiastical  councils.3 

But  the  sermon  was  noticed  not  so  much  in  the 
spirit  of  criticism  as  in  its  bearings  on  the  welfare 
of  the  Scottish  Church,  by  one  who  did  not  give  his 
name,  but  is  supposed  to  have  been  the  learned  Dr. 
Lowth,  Bishop  of  London.  He  died  two  years  later, 
and  for  this  reason,  probably,  the  implied  pledge  to 
reveal  himself  was  never  fulfilled.  The  letter,  which 
was  addressed  to  Bishop  Kilgour,  intimated  that  a  de- 
sign had  been  formed  in  England  to  do  the  Scottish 
Church  some  service,  when  a  suitable  opportunity  oc- 
curred. Its  tenor  is  best  seen  by  giving  it  a  place  in 
these  pages. 

LONDON,  June  9,  1785. 

RIGHT  REV.  SIR,  —  The  Consecration  of  Doctor  Seabury, 
by  the  Scotch  Bishops,  was  an  event  which  gave  much  pleas- 
ure to  many  of  the  most  dignified  and  respectable  amongst 
the  English  Clergy,  and  to  none  more  than  to  him  who  now 

1  Sermon,  pp.  38,  39.  2  Gentleman's  Magazine. 

8  Walker's  Memoir  of  Bishop  Gleig,  cla.  ii. 


184  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

has  the  honor  to  address  you.  A  man  who  believes  Epis- 
copacy, as  I  do,  to  be  a  divine  institution,  could  not  but 
rejoice  to  see  it  derived  through  so  pure  a  channel  to  the 
Western  World. 

Full  of  the  greatness  of  this  measure,  I  immediately  sent 
for  the  sermon  preached  at  the  consecration,  on  observing  it 
advertised.  And  I  am  sorry  to  say,  that  I  perused  it  with 
a  mixture  of  satisfaction  and  deep  concern.  Much  of  it  met 
my  entire  assent.  It  exhibits  principles  which  I  have  al- 
ways entertained,  and  which  every  friend  to  Episcopacy 
must  approve.  There  are  some  passages  in  it,  however, 
which  I  sincerely  wish  it  had  not  contained,  and  which  I 
cannot  help  thinking  it  was  injudicious  to  publish,  as  I  am 
afraid  they  are  calculated  to  hurt  your  Church,  and  danger- 
ous to  the  interests  of  Episcopacy  in  North  Britain. 

Nor  is  this  my  own  opinion  merely,  but  of  several  of  my 
brethren,  well  affected  to  the  Episcopal  Church  of  Scotland, 
who  have  read  the  discourse. 

Many  think  they  perceive  in  it  the  English  Bishops 
treated  with  contempt,  for  not  consecrating  Dr.  Seabury  at 
every  risk ;  and  the  manner  in  which  the  Acts  of  the  British 
Parliament  are  mentioned,  in  a  note,  gives  general  offense. 
For  passages  of  this  nature  there  is  the  less  indulgence,  be- 
cause it  is  conceived,  that,  on  such  an  occasion,  they  were 
perfectly  unnecessary,  and  cannot,  in  any  view,  possibly  do 
good. 

Who  the  author  of  this  performance  is,  I  have  not  been  in- 
formed ;  but  I  address  myself  to  you,  Sir,  having  been  told 
that  you  are  one  of  the  Scottish  Bishops.  My  purpose  is 
not  to  criticise  the  sermon ;  if  such  were  my  views,  I  might 
justly  be  reckoned  an  impertinent  meddler.  I  am  actuated, 
I  hope,  by  better  motives,  and  such  as  you  will  approve. 

The  Church  of  England,  Sir,  I  am  well  authorized  to  say, 
hath,  of  late  years,  looked  on  her  sister  in  Scotland  with  a 
pitying  eye.  Many  of  our  Clergy  have  regarded  her  as 
hardly  dealt  with,  and  wished  for  a  repeal  of  those  laws  un- 
der which  she  now  suffers.  I  have  good  reason  to  believe 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  185 

that  there  is  an  intention  formed  of  endeavoring  to  do  her 
some  service  at  a  convenient  season ;  and  I  sincerely  hope 
no  circumstance  will  intervene  to  frustrate  that  intention. 
It  pains  me  to  say,  however,  that  this  sermon  is  not  likely  to 
promote  it.  I  cannot  suppose  that  the  Prelate  who  preached 
it,  meant  by  its  publication  either  to  alienate  the  English 
Clergy  from  the  society  to  which  he  belongs,  or  to  insult  the 
British  Government ;  for  I  will  not  suppose  that  a  Bishop 
would  write  purposely  to  prevent  the  good  of  that  Church 
which,  above  all  others,  it  is  his  duty  to  cherish.  But  surely 
there  are  passages  in  this  sermon  not  well  fitted  to  induce 
either  the  Clergy  of  England  to  apply  for  a  mitigation  of 
those  rigors  of  which  the  preacher  complains,  or  the  State 
to  grant  that  mitigation  were  the  application  made.  It  is 
in  this  view,  Sir,  that  many  of  us  regret  the  publication  of 
the  sermon,  and  think  it  imprudent.  We  wish  our  sister 
church  to  prosper,  and  would  be  happy  could  we  contribute 
to  her  prosperity.  But  with  what  face  could  we  apply  for 
relief  to  her,  while  her  governors  openly  avow  such  senti- 
ments? We  flatter  ourselves  that  they  are  not  the  senti- 
ments of  many  of  the  Bishops  and  Clergy  of  Scotland ;  and 
we  would  hope,  nay  even  beg  and  entreat  (had  we  any 
right  to  do  so),  that  they  would  not  themselves  put  it  out 
of  our  power  to  make  use  of  those  exertions  which  we  are 
much  disposed  to  employ  in  their  favor,  and  which  we  doubt 
not  might  prove  successful. 

After  what  I  have  said,  Sir,  I  hope  I  have  no  occasion  to 
apologize  for  this  letter.  I  can  affirm  with  truth,  that  it 
is  dictated  by  the  warmest  attachment  to  the  interests  of 
Protestant  Episcopacy,  and  has  no  other  end  in  view  but 
the  good  of  that  Church  over  which  you  preside.  Who  the 
writer  of  it  is  you  may  possibly  hereafter  learn ;  at  present 
he  can  only  assure  you  that  he  is,  with  every  sentiment  of 
respect  for  your  sacred  character, 

A  DIGNIFIED  CLERGYMAN  OF  THE  CHUKCH  OF  ENGLAND. 

P.  S.  May  I  claim  your  indulgence  for  franking  this  let- 


186  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

ter  only  to  Edinburgh.     It  is  owing  to  my  not  being  able  to 
learn  the  name  of  the  place  where  you  reside.1 

The  words  of  Bishop  Skinner  in  the  note,  which 
gave  the  great  offense,  were  to  the  effect  that  the 
clergy  of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  Scotland  had  vent- 
ured for  a  long  time  to  show  more  regard  to  the  Acts 
of  the  Apostles,  than  to  the  Acts  of  the  British  Par- 
liament. 

It  is  proper  to  introduce  here  one  more  letter  be- 
fore entering  upon  other  subjects.  It  has  been  seen 
that  when  Dr.  Chandler  was  about  to  embark  for 
America,  he  suggested  to  Bishop  Skinner,  if  he  wished 
to  obtain  intelligence  of  the  arrival  and  reception  of 
his  friend  in  this  country,  to  open  a  correspondence 
with  the  Rev.  Jonathan  Boucher,  and  accordingly  he 
addressed  him  as  follows  from 

ABERDEEN,  25th  June,  1785. 

Some  time  ago  I  wrote  to  your  acquaintance,  Dr.  Chand- 
ler, begging,  as  a  singular  favor,  that  he  would  be  kind 
enough  to  communicate  to  me  any  interesting  intelligence 
he  might  receive  of  our  worthy  friend,  Bishop  Seabury,  of 
whose  welfare  and  success,  you  may  believe,  I  will  ever  be 
anxious  to  hear.  The  good  Doctor  lost  no  time  in  making  a 
most  obliging  return  to  my  letter ;  but  informed  me,  to  my 
great  regret,  that  his  state  of  health  was  such  as  to  render  a 
sea  voyage  absolutely  necessary  for  the  recovery  of  it,  and 
that  he  was  to  sail  in  a  short  time  for  New  York,  being 
obliged  to  leave  the  great  object  of  his  coming  to  Britain  un- 
accomplished. Pity  were  it  that  a  design  so  laudable,  and 
so  essential  to  the  interests  of  religion  in  the  new  province, 
should  thus  be  set  aside  by  reasons  of  state,  without  any 
other  formidable  impediment  in  the  way  of  it. 

With  uncommon  attention  to  my  anxiety,  after  informing 

1  Annals  of  Scottish  Episcopacy,  pp.  60-64. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  187 

me  of  his  intended  departure  from  England,  and  the  afflict- 
ing cause  of  it,  Dr.  Chandler  adds,  "  that  by  his  migration  I 
can  be  no  loser,  if  in  his  stead  I  will  adopt  for  my  corre- 
spondent the  Rev.  Mr.  Boucher,  of  Paddington,"  of  whom 
he  gives  a  most  amiable  character,  and,  what  endears  you 
still  more  to  me,  describes  you  as  one  of  the  most  confiden- 
tial friends  of  Bishop  Seabury.  As  such,  I  now  gladly  em-- 
brace the  opportunity  of  introducing  myself  to  you,  in  hopes 
that,  by  the  time  this  reaches  your  hand,  there  will  be  some 
account  of  the  good  Bishop's  arrival  in  America,  if  it  has 
pleased  God  to  grant  him  a  speedy  and  prosperous  voyage, 
for  which  I  doubt  not  the  prayers  of  many  have  been  de- 
voutly addressed  to  heaven. 

The  Bishop  promised  to  write  me  from  Halifax,  if  he 
found  any  vessel  there  for  Scotland.  But  as  you  will  proba- 
bly hear  of  him,  if  not  from  him,  sooner  than  I  can  expect, 
and  oftener  than  he  will  have  occasion  to  write  to  me,  it  will 
be  doing  me  a  very  great  favor  if  you  will  be  so  good  as  to 
inform  me,  from  time  to  time,  what  accounts  you  may  re- 
ceive either  from  him  or  of  him,  such  as  you  think  will  be 
acceptable  to  one  who  loves  and  esteems  him,  and  wishes 
his  success  and  happiness,  as  I  do.  This  is  a  task  which 
I  would  not  have  presumed  to  impose  on  you,  had  not  Dr. 
Chandler  so  kindly  paved  the  way  for  it. 

Our  amiable  friend,  the  Bishop  of  Connecticut,  will  have 
many  difficulties  to  struggle  with,  in  the  blessed  work  he 
has  undertaken ;  and  particularly  from  certain  occurrences 
in  some  of  the  southern  states,  which  will,  I  fear,  create  no 
small  opposition  to  the  conscientious  discharge  of  his  duty. 
The  busy,  bustling  President  of  Washington  College,  Mary- 
land, seems  to  be  laying  a  foundation  for  much  confusion 
throughout  the  churches  of  North  America,  and  it  will  re- 
quire all  Bishop  Seabury's  prudence  and  good  management 
to  counteract  his  preposterous  measures.  I  saw  a  letter 
from  this  man  lately  to  a  Clergyman  in  this  country,  wherein 
he  proposes  to  be  in  London  as  last  month,  and  wishes  to 
know  what  the  Bishops  in  Scotland  would  do,  on  an  applica- 


188  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

tion  to  them  from  any  foreign  country,  such  as  America  is 
now  declared  to  be,  for  a  succession  in  their  ministry,  by 
the  consecration  of  one  or  more  Bishops  for  them  !  By  this 
time,  I  suppose,  he  knows  both  what  we  would  do  and  what 
we  have  done  ;  and  perhaps  is  not  ignorant,  that,  as  our  terms 
would  not  please  him,  so  his  measures  would  be  equally  dis- 
pleasing to  us. 

I  have  seen,  in  the  "  Gentleman's  Magazine,"  various 
strictures  on  the  subject  of  Dr.  Seabury's  consecration ;  and 
the  sermon  preached  on  the  occasion  has  been  criticised,  and 
some  passages  in  it  found  fault  with,  as  disrespectful  to  the 
English  Bishops,  and  even  to  the  authority  of  the  British 
Parliament.  As  the  author  intended  not  his  discourse  for 
the  meridian  of  London,  he  was  at  no  pains  to  adapt  it  to 
the  notions  that  are  cherished  under  the  warm  sunshine  of 
civil  establishment ;  it  is  sufficient  for  him,  if  it  meets  with 
the  approbation  of  the  truly  wise  and  worthy,  wherever  they 
be,  that  look  more  to  the  things  of  Christ  than  to  the  things 
of  this  world.1 

Two  months  after  Bishop  Seabury  left  the  Downs, 
Dr.  Chandler  followed  him  to  America,  and  shortly 
before  his  embarkation,  he  received  a  letter  from  the 
Kev.  Charles  Wesley,  reciting  briefly  his  personal 
history,  and  giving  good  reasons  for  not  separating 
from  the  Church  of  England.  He  disapproved  of  the 
course  pursued  by  his  brother  John  in  assuming,  in 
the  eighty-second  year  of  his  age,  the  Episcopal  char- 
acter and  its  functions,  and  felt  that  he  had  "  acted 
contrary  to  all  his  declarations,  protestations,  and 
writings ;  robbed  his  friends  of  their  boasting ;  real- 
ized the  Nag's  Head  ordination ;  and  left  an  indelible 
blot  on  his  name,  as  long  as  it  shall  be  remembered." 

The  postscript  formed  an  important  part  of  the  let- 

1  Annals  of  Scottish  Episcopacy,  pp.  48-51. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABUR1.  189 

ter,  and  was  in  very  significant  language:  "What 
will  become  of  those  poor  sheep  in  the  wilderness, 
the  American  Methodists  ?  How  have  they  been  be- 
trayed into  a  separation  from  the  Church  of  England, 
which  their  preachers  and  tbey  no  more  intended 
than  the  Methodists  here  ?  Had  they  had  patience  a 
little  longer,  they  would  have  seen  a  real  primitive 
bishop  in  America,  duly  consecrated  by  three  Scotch 
bishops,  who  had  their  consecration  from  the  Eng- 
lish bishops,  and  are  acknowledged  by  them  as  the 
same  with  themselves.  There  is,  therefore,  not  the 
least  difference  betwixt  the  members  of  Bishop  Sea- 
bury's  Church  and  the  members  of  the  Church  of 
England. 

"  You  know  I  had  the  happiness  to  converse  with 
that  truly  apostolical  man,  who  is  esteemed  by  all 
that  know  him,  as  much  as  by  you  and  me.  He  told 
me  he  looked  upon  the  Methodists  as  sound  members 
of  the  Church,  and  was  ready  to  ordain  any  of  the 
preachers,  whom  he  should  find  duly  qualified.  His 
ordination  would  be  genuine,  valid,  and  Episcopal. 
But  what  are  your  poor  Methodists  now  ?  Only  a 
new  sect  of  Presbyterians.  And  after  my  brother's 
death,  which  is  now  so  very  near,  what  will  be  their 
end  ?  They  will  lose  all  their  usefulness  and  impor- 
tance ;  they  win  turn  aside  to  vain  j anglings ;  they 
will  settle  again  upon  their  lees,  and,  like  other  sects, 
come  to  nothing." 

Full  two  years  had  now  passed  away  since  Seabury 
left  this  country,  and  he  had  been  so  intent  on  the 
accomplishment  of  his  great  object,  as  to  give  but 
little  heed  to  the  movements  on  this  side  towards  a 
general  ecclesiastical  organization.  In  Maryland  and 


190  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

Virginia  the  Episcopal  Church  had  legal  establish- 
ments before  the  Kevolution,  and  upon  the  return  of 
peace  and  the  independence  of  the  colonies,  Governor 
Paca,  of  the  former  State,  brought  to  the  notice  of 
the  legislature  at  its  session  in  May,  1783,  the  provis- 
ions of  the  declaration  of  rights,  and  recommended, 
as  among  the  first  objects  proper  for  consideration, 
"an  adequate  support  of  the  Christian  religion."  The 
clergy  of  the  Church,  who  were  fortunately  convened 
about  that  time  at  the  first  Commencement  of  Wash- 
ington College,  discussed  the  changes  necessary  to 
be  made  in  the  Liturgy,  and  the  question  of  organiz- 
ing and  securing  a  succession  in  the  ministry  so  as 
to  command  support  with  other  Christian  denomina- 
tions.1 

Nineteen  clergymen  of  the  State  met  at  Annapolis, 
August  13,  1783,  "  agreeable  to  a  vote  of  the  Gen- 
eral Assembly,  passed  upon  a  petition  presented  in 
the  name  and  behalf  of  the  said  clergy,"  and  set 
forth  a  declaration  of  certain  fundamental  rights  and 
liberties  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  of  Mary- 
land. The  first  signer  to  this  document  was  "  Will- 
iam Smith,  President,  S.  Paul's  and  Chester  Parishes, 
Kent  County,"  and  it  affirmed  the  identity  of  this 
Church  with  the  Church  of  England,  before  estab- 
lished in  the  province.  Without  contention  with 
other  Christian  bodies,  these  clergymen  asserted  for 
themselves  the  essential  right  of  a  threefold  ministry, 
and  claimed  that  none  but  such  as  are  duly  called 
"  by  regular  Episcopal  ordination  can,  or  ought  to  be 
admitted  into,  or  enjoy  any  of  the  '  churches,  chapels, 
glebes,  or  other  property '  formerly  belonging  to  the 

1  Hawks's  Ecclesiastical  Contributions,  Maryland,  p.  291. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  191 

Church  of  England  in  this  State,  and  which  by  the 
constitution  and  form  of  government  is  secured  to 
the  said  Church  forever,  by  whatever  name  she,  the 
said  Church,  or  her  superior  order  of  ministers,  may 
in  future  be  denominated."  The  right  was  also  de- 
clared to  revise  the  Liturgy,  when  the  said  Church 
should  be  "  duly  organized,  constituted,  and  repre- 
sented in  a  synod,  or  convention  of  the  different  or- 
ders of  her  ministry  and  people,"  it  being  the  inten- 
tion not  to  depart  further  from  the  venerable  order 
and  forms  of  the  English  ritual  than  might  "  be  found 
expedient  in  the  change  in  their  situation  from  a 
daughter  to  a  sister  church." * 

In  a  letter  to  a  friend  from  the  Kev.  Mr.  Claggett, 
afterwards  bishop,  dated  September  20,  1783,  the  fol- 
lowing statement  is  made  :  "  I  suppose  you  have  long 
ago  heard  that  the  clergy  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  met  last  month  at  Annapolis,  and  that  we 
formed  a  bill  of  rights  ;  chose  Dr.  Smith  to  go  to 
Europe  to  be  ordained  an  antistes,  president  of  the 
clergy,  or  bishop  (if  that  name  does  not  hurt  your 
feelings).  He  will  probably  be  back  some  time  next 
spring." 

No  laymen  were  present  at  this  meeting,  but  an- 
other was  held  in  June  of  the  next  year,  when  lay 
representatives  from  the  several  parishes  in  the  State 
were  admitted,  and  the  previous  steps  were  reviewed 
and  unanimously  approved.  A  joint  committee  of  both 
orders  was  appointed  to  devise  a  system  of  ecclesi- 
astical government,  to  "define  the  duties  of  bishops, 
priests,  and  deacons,  in  matters  spiritual,"  as  well  as 
the  rights  of  clergy  and  laity  in  conventions,  and  to 

1  Fac-simile  of  original  MS. 


192  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

"  prescribe  some  mode  of  administering  discipline, 
clerical  and  lay."  The  committee,  for  want  of  time, 
did  not  report  in  full  according  to  instructions,  but 
agreed  on  certain  leading  principles,  among  which 
were,  these :  that  ecclesiastical  conventions  ought  to 
be  held  at  least  once  a  year,  and  if  any  person  of 
Maryland  should  resort  to  foreign  authority  for  con- 
secration as  a  bishop,  or  for  ordination,  and  in  order 
to  obtain  it  should  be  obliged  to  take  an  oath  of  civil 
or  canonical  obedience  to  such  authority,  he  should 
renounce  the  same  and  take  an  oath  of  allegiance  to 
Maryland  before  exercising  ministerial  functions  in 
any  Episcopal  church  within  the  limits  of  the  State. 

On  Monday  the  29th  of  March,  1784,  three  clergy- 
men, with  four  laymen,  from  the  parishes  in  Phila- 
delphia to  which  they  respectively  ministered,  met 
by  appointment  at  the  house  of  Dr.  White  for  the 
purpose  of  conferring  together  concerning  the  forma- 
tion of  a  representative  body  of  the  Episcopal  Church 
in  Pennsylvania.  After  considering  the  necessity  of 
speedily  adopting  measures  for  the  plan,  they  de- 
cided that  a  subject  of  so  much  importance  should  be 
taken  up,  if  possible,  with  the  general  concurrence  of 
the  Episcopalians  in  the  United  States,  and  they  re- 
solved, therefore,  to  consult  other  "members  of  the 
Episcopal  congregations"  in  Pennsylvania,  who  might 
then  be  in  town,  and  invite  them  to  attend  a  meet- 
ing at  Christ  Church  on  the  next  Wednesday  even- 
ing at  seven  o'clock. 

When  the  time  arrived,  and  the  body  assembled, 
two  additional  laymen  were  present,  and  the  Eev. 
Dr.  White  was  elected  chairman.  Other  gentlemen, 

1  Hawks' s  Ecclesiastical  Contributions,  p.  297. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  193 

who  had  designed  to  attend,  were  detained  by  the 
unexpected  sitting  of  the  legislature,  of  which  they 
were  members,  and  the  only  business  done  was  to  ad- 
dress a  circular  letter,  signed  by  the  chairman,  to  the 
wardens  and  vestrymen  of  each  Episcopal  congrega- 
tion in  the  State,  requesting  them,  as  preparatory  to 
a  general  consultation,  "  to  delegate  one  or  more  of 
their  body  to  assist  at  a  meeting  to  be  held  "  in  Phil- 
adelphia on  the  24th  of  the  ensuing  May. 

Five  clergymen  and  eighteen  laymen  met  in  re- 
sponse to  this  request,  and  impowered  a  standing 
committee  to  correspond  and  confer  with  representa- 
tives from  the  Episcopal  Church  in  the  other  States, 
or  any  of  them,  and  join  in  framing  a  constitution  of 
ecclesiastical  government  which  should  be  binding  on 
all  the  congregations  consenting  to  it,  as  soon  as  a 
majority  of  them  had  signified  their  consent.  These 
were  among  the  instructions  or  fundamental  princi- 
ples laid  down  for  the  guidance  of  the  committee: 
"  that  the  Episcopal  Church  in  these  States  is,  and 
ought  to  be,  independent  of  all  foreign  authority, 
ecclesiastical  or  civil ;  .  .  .  .  that  the  doctrines  of 
the  gospel  be  maintained,  as  now  professed  by  the 
Church  of  England,  and  uniformity  of  worship  con- 
tinued as  near  as  may  be  to  the  Liturgy  of  the  said 
Church ;  that  the  succession  of  the  ministry  be  agree- 
able to  the  usage  which  requireth  the  three  orders 
of  bishops,  priests,  and  deacons ;  that  the  rights  and 
powers  of  the  same  respectively  be  ascertained,  and 
that  they  be  exercised  according  to  reasonable  laws 
to  be  duly  made;"  and,  finally,  "that  no  powers  be 
delegated  to  a  general  ecclesiastical  government  ex- 
cept such  as  cannot  conveniently  be  exercised  by 

13 


194  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

the  clergy  and  laity  in  their  respective  congrega- 
tions." l 

Earlier  in  the  month  (Tuesday,  May  llth),  ten 
clergymen  and  six  laymen  from  the  States  of  New 
York,  New  Jersey,  and  Pennsylvania  met  at  New 
Brunswick,  professedly  to  look  into  the  affairs  of 
"  The  Corporation  for  the  Belief  of  Widows  and  Or- 
phans," a  society  whose  funds  had  vanished  or  been 
deranged  during  the  war,  and  the  opportunity  was 
improved  by  the  clergy  from  Pennsylvania,  of  com- 
municating the  measures  recently  adopted  in  that 
State,  tending  to  the  general  organization  of  the 
Church.  The  meeting  was  informal,  but  Dr.  White 
presided  and  the  Kev.  Benjamin  Moore  acted  as  sec- 
retary and  kept  brief  minutes,  from  which  it  appears 
to  have  been  agreed  to  request  him,  the  Rev.  Abra- 
ham Beach,  and  the  Rev.  Joshua  Bloomer,  "  to  wait 
upon  the  clergy  of  Connecticut,  who  are  to  be  con- 
vened on  the  Wednesday  in  Trinity  week  next  en- 
suing, for  the  purpose  of  soliciting  their  concurrence 
with  us  in  such  measures  as  may  be  deemed  condu- 
cive to  the  union  and  prosperity  of  the  Episcopal 
churches  in  the  States  of  America." 

The  next  morning  Dr.  White  was  taken  aside  be- 
fore the  meeting,  by  Mr.  Moore,  "  who  expressed  the 
wish  of  himself  and  others,  that  nothing  should  be 
urged  further  on  the  subject,  as  they  found  them- 
selves peculiarly  circumstanced,  in  consequence  of 
their  having  joined  the  clergy  of  Connecticut  in  their 
application  for  the  consecration  of  a  bishop." 2  This 
was  the  first  intelligence  which  the  clergy  from  Phil- 

1  Journal  of  the  Meetings,  ed.  1790. 

2  Memoirs  of  P.  E.  Church,  p.  78. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  195 

adelphia  had  received  of  the  movements  in  Connecti- 
cut towards  obtaining  the  Episcopacy,  and  bringing 
the  Church  safe  out  of  the  confusions  and  conse- 
quences of  the  Revolution.  Before  breaking  up,  how- 
ever, it  was  determined  to  secure  a  meeting,  as  gen- 
eral as  possible,  of  representatives  of  the  clergy  and 
laity  of  the  different  States,  in  the  city  of  New  York, 
on  the  sixth  day  of  the  ensuing  October,  and  pains 
were  taken  to  notify  the  brethren  eastward  and 
southward  of  this  proposed  convention. 

The  three  gentlemen  requested  to  wait  upon  the 
clergy  of  Connecticut  fulfilled  the  purposes  of  their 
appointment,  and,  as  learned  from  a  letter  of  Mr. 
Beach  to  Dr.  White,  they  found  them  raising  some 
objections  with  respect  to  lay  delegates.  The  Con- 
necticut clergy  "thought  themselves  fully  adequate 
to  the  business  of  representing  the  Episcopal  Church 
in  their  State,  and  that  the  laity  did  not  expect  or 
wish  to  be  called  in  as  delegates  on  such  an  occasion ; 
but  would,  with  full  confidence,  trust  matters  pure- 
ly ecclesiastical  to  their  clergy."  They  determined, 
however,  to  "  send  a  committee  of  their  body  to  rep- 
resent "  them  at  the  proposed  convention ;  but  on  the 
28th  of  September,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Fogg,  of  Pomfret, 
wrote  to  Mr.  Parker,  of  Boston :  "  I  was  at  Norwich 
about  ten  days  ago,  and  Mr.  Tyler  informed  me  that 
the  Connecticut  clergy,  who  met  at  New  Haven  at 
Commencement,  did  not  propose  to  meet  the  South- 
ern clergy  at  New  York,  as  they  expect  Dr.  Seabury 
will  succeed  in  the  business  he  went  to  London  for, 
and  at  his  return  it  will  be  time  enough  to  revise  the 
Liturgy ;  they,  however,  wrote  by  Mr.  Marshall,  one 
of  our  brethren,  giving  reasons  for  their  conduct." 


196  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

NEW  HAVEN,  September  9,  1784. 

GENTLEMEN,  —  We  hereby  acknowledge  your  invitation 
of  the  clergy  of  Connecticut  to  meet  you  in  Convention, 
appointed  to  be  held  at  New  York  on  the  5th  of  October. 
The  intention  of  this  invitation  we  understand,  from  the  re- 
port of  your  Committee,  and  what  we  see  done  in  a  meet- 
ing at  Philadelphia,  May  25th,  was  to  collect  as  extensively 
as  at  present  is  practicable,  the  voice  of  the  professors  of 
the  Church,  in  order  to  frame  an  ecclesiastical  constitution, 
a  form  of  public  worship,  and  a  regimen  of  government. 

While  we  ardently  desire  that  the  strictest  uniformity 
may  obtain  in  the  American  Church,  we  shall  be  equally  so- 
licitous to  do  everything  in  our  power,  in  conjunction  with 
our  brethren  in  the  other  States,  to  promote  that  important 
end  and  to  lay  a  permanent  foundation  on  which  to  continue 
and  perpetuate  in  her,  unity  of  spirit  in  the  bond  of  peace. 

But  to  proceed  with  propriety  in  affairs  of  the  above 
nature,  and  of  such  momentous  consideration,  we  observe, 
that  in  our  opinion,  the  first  regular  step  is,  to  have  the 
American  Church  completed  in  her  officers ;  prior  to  that 
we  conceive  all  our  proceedings  will  be  unprecedented  and 
unsanctioned  by  any  authoritative  example  in  the  Christian 
church. 

To  avoid  what  we  judge  a  procedure  that  no  Episcopalian 
•would  willingly  adopt,  but  under  circumstances  that,  with 
him,  decide  the  necessity  for  it,  we  have  taken  our  measures 
to  obtain  for  Connecticut  the  principal  officer  in  our  Church, 
whose  arrival  among  us  we  flatter  ourselves  with  the  cer- 
tainty of,  and  that  the  time  is  not  very  far  distant.  When- 
ever this  event  hath  taken  place,  we  shall,  being  prompted 
by  sentiments  of  duty  as  well  as  by  inclination,  be  forward 
to  meet  our  brethren  of  the  other  States,  and,  with  our 
bishop,  deliberate  upon  every  subject  needful  and  salutary 
to  our  Church.  We  would  wish  to  be  considered  as  having 
warmly  at  heart  the  unity  and  prosperity  of  the  Episcopal 
Church  in  America,  and  that  all  things  may  be  done  de- 
cently and  in  order,  for  the  accomplishment  of  that  most  in- 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  197 

teresting  object.  We  shall  accordingly  esteem  it  as  a  mark 
of  brotherly  attention,  and  what  will  afford  us  a  high  satis- 
faction, if  our  brethren  in  the  united  Convention  at  New 
York  should  concur  with  us  on  this  occasion,  and  agree  to 
suspend  the  entering  upon  those  general  points,  until  we  can 
properly  meet  them  upon  an  affair  of  so  great  moment,  and 
joint  concern  to  them,  to  ourselves,  and  the  whole  American 
Church. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Marshall,  at  our  request,  will  deliver  this, 
and  represent  us  in  your  Convention. 

We  are,  with  respect,  your  brethren  and  humble  servants, 
the  clergy  of  Connecticut. 

Signed  by  order, 

ABEAHAM  JARVIS,  Secretary. 

The  meeting  was  held  at  the  time  and  place  desig- 
nated, and  sixteen  clergymen  and  eleven  laymen  were 
present.  From  New  England  went  the  Rev.  Samuel 
Parker,  representing  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island, 
and  the  Rev.  John  R.  Marshall,  who  was  impowered  as 
above  mentioned  by  the  clergy  of  Connecticut.  The 
Rev.  Dr.  William  Smith,  then  of  Maryland,  was  called 
to  the  chair,  and  the  Rev.  Benjamin  Moore  appoint- 
ed secretary.  The  first  resolution  adopted  was  to 
create  a  committee  "to  essay  the  fundamental  prin- 
ciples of  a  general  constitution  of  this  Church,"  with 
power  to  "  frame  and  propose  to  the  convention  a 
proper  substitute  for  the  state  prayers  in  the  Litur- 
gy to  be  used  for  the  sake  of  uniformity  till  a  fur- 
ther review  shall  be  undertaken  by  general  author- 
ity and  consent."  The  committee  reported  the  next 
morning,  as  "  the  fundamental  principles  of  an  ec- 
clesiastical constitution,"  resolutions  similar  to  those 
previously  adopted  in  Pennsylvania.  Provision  was 
made  for  a  general  convention  of  "  the  Episcopal 


198  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

Church  in  the  United  States  of  America/'  with  dep- 
uties from  each  State,  consisting  oJ  clergy  and  laity, 
and  the  primary  meeting  of  this  body  was  appointed 
to  be  held  at  Philadelphia  the  Tuesday  before  the 
Feast  of  St.  Michael,  1785.  It  was  laid  down  as 
another  fundamental  principle,  "  that  in  every  State 
where  there  shall  be  a  bishop  duly  consecrated  and 
settled,  he  shall  be  considered  as  a  member  of  the 
convention  ex  officio." 

Mr.  Marshall  had  special  instructions  to  guide  him, 
and  read  to  the  assembly  the  letter  which  appears  on 
a  preceding  page. 

The  Kev.  Mr.  Parker,  though  put  upon  the  gen- 
eral committee,  was  in  sympathy  with  the  clergy  of 
Connecticut,  and  could  not  help  being  solicitous  as 
to  the  ultimate  success  of  their  chosen  head.  This 
success  had  been  several  weeks  achieved  when  the 
Rev.  Benjamin  Moore,  not  knowing  the  fact,  wrote 
him  from  New  York,  December  21,  1784 :  "  Our 
Church  affairs  remain  as  they  were.  The  prospect 
of  an  American  Episcopate  seems  to  be  as  uncer- 
tain as  ever.  A  letter  from  Dr.  Seabury  to  a  gentle- 
man in  this  city  has  this  expression :  '  I  have  been 
amused,  I  think  deceived ; '  I  am  informed,  however, 
that  the  clergy  of  Maryland,  in  a  late  convention, 
have  fixed  upon  Dr.  Smith  as  a  candidate  for  Epis- 
copal orders,  and  that  he  is  to  embark  for  England 
next  April.  But  if  the  gentleman  who  is  there  at 
present  cannot  succeed,  I  should  suppose  it  will  pre- 
clude every  other  attempt. 

"  Shall  we  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you  at  Phil- 
adelphia, at  the  general  assembly  of  all  the  churches  ? 
I  hope  so ;  that  phrase  General  Assembly,  I  am  not 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  199 

very  fond  of ;  it  escaped  me  by  chance.  We  will  try 
to  give  it  a  better  "character." 

He  did  not  attend  the  meeting  in  Philadelphia,  but 
wrote  to  Dr.  White  more  than  a  year  before  it  was 
held,  and  transmitted  an  extract  of  the  proceedings 
of  a  convention  of  the  Episcopal  clergy  of  the  States 
of  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island,  adopting  the  fun- 
damental principles,  or  instructions,  set  forth  in  New 
York,  but  "  adding  a  restriction  or  rather  explana- 
tory clause/'  in  these  words:  "It  is  our  unanimous 
opinion  that  it  is  beginning  at  the  wrong  end  to  at- 
tempt to  organize  our  Church  before  we  have  ob- 
tained a  head.  Our  churches  at  present  resemble 
the  scattered  limbs  of  the  body  without  any  common 
centre  of  union  or  principle  to  animate  the  whole. 
We  cannot  conceive  it  probable,  or  even  possible,  to 
carry  the  plan  you  have  pointed  out  into  execution, 
before  an  Episcopate  is  obtained  to  direct  our  motions 
and  by  a  delegated  authority  to  claim  our  assent." 

Dr.  White  and  his  associates  in  the  "  standing  com- 
mittee" of  Pennsylvania  resolved  on  the  7th  of  Feb- 
ruary, 1785,  to  send  an  account  of  their  proceedings, 
in  concurrence  with  the  action  of  the  meeting  in 
New  York,  to  every  clergyman  and  congregation 
of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  the  State,  and  to  recom- 
mend that  the  clergy  and  duly  authorized  deputies 
from  the  several  congregations  be  present  in  Christ 
Church,  Philadelphia,  on  Monday  the  23d  of  May 
ensuing,  for  the  purpose  of  organizing,  "  agreeably 
to  the  intentions  of  the  body  assembled  in  New 
York."  Six  clergymen  and  ten  laymen  met  as  thus 
summoned  and  proceeded  to  adopt  an  act  of  associa- 
tion, based  on  the  fundamental  principles  which  had 


200  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

been  set  forth,  to  provide  for  an  annual  convention 
of  the  clergy  and  the  several  congregations,  and  to 
determine  and  declare  that  they  "  shall  be  called  and 
known  by  the  name  of  The  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania."  By  this  time 
Dr.  Smith  had  returned  from  Maryland,  and  partici- 
pated in  the  business  of  this  meeting.  How  much 
influence  he  had  does  not  appear,  and  his  name  is  not 
mentioned  in  the  brief  minutes  except  in  the  list  of 
those  who  are  enrolled  as  present.1 

Dr.  White,  in  his  later  days,  took  special  credit  to 
himself  for  his  exertions  to  restore  what  was  brok- 
en up,  and  left  in  a  disordered  condition.  In  1832, 
when  he  had  been  forty-five  years  bishop  of  the  dio- 
cese of  Pennsylvania,  he  delivered  a  charge  to  the 
clerical  members  of  his  convention  on  the  subject  of 
Revivals,  and  began  the  concluding  paragraph  thus : 
"  Brethren,  it  is  bordering  on  the  half  of  a  century 
since  the  date  of  the  incipient  measures  of  your 
bishop  for  the  organizing  of  our  Church  out  of  the 
wreck  of  the  Revolution."  He  put  these  measures 
back  to  the  publication  of  his  pamphlet,  which  was  so 
unacceptable  to  the  views  of  other  Northern  clergy- 
men besides  those  in  Connecticut.2 

1  Journals  of  the  first  six  Conventions,  1790. 
3  Appendix  C. 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  201 


CHAPTER  XII. 

LETTER  OF  BISHOP  SKINNER  TO  MR.  BOUCHER,  AND  HIS  ANSWER  ; 
ARRIVAL  OF  BISHOP  SEABURY  AT  NEWPORT,  AND  LANDING  AT  NEW 
LONDON  ;  CONVENTION  AT  MIDDLETOWN,  AND  HIS  RECOGNITION  BY 
THE  CLERGY;  ORDINATION,  AND  SERMON  OF  MR.  LEAMING;  CONVO- 
CATION, AND  THE  CLERGY  OF  MASSACHUSETTS;  COMMITTEE  ON  AL- 
TERATIONS IN  THE  LITURGY,  AND  BISHOP'S  CHARGE. 

A.  D.  1785-1786. 

WE  left  Bishop  Seabury  three  months  ago  depart- 
ing from  the  Downs  for  America,  and  on  the  fourth 
day  after  sailing,  the  vessel  was  sixty-five  leagues 
west  of  the  Cornish  shore.  The  voyage  across  the 
Atlantic  was  a  long  one,  and  his  friends  on  both  sides 
were  anxious  to  learn  of  his  safe  arrival.  In  those 
days  the  means  of  communication  were  not  frequent, 
and  there  was  no  way,  except  by  accident,  of  reliev- 
ing the  painful  suspense  in  which  persons  were  often 
kept.  The  first  intelligence  which  Bishop  Skinner, 
who  was  deeply  interested  to  hear  of  his  arrival 
in  this  country,  received,  was  indirect,  and  came 
through1  the  Eev.  Jonathan  Boucher,  with  whom  he 
had  just  opened  a  correspondence.  It  was  conveyed 
in  the  following  letter,  written  from  Epsom,  Decem- 
ber 6,  1785,  and  while  it  pleased  the  Scottish  prelates 
to  get  this  intelligence,  there  still  lingered  in  their 
minds  many  apprehensions  that  the  trials  of  the 
Bishop  of  Connecticut  were  not  yet  ended  :  — 


202  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

When  your  very  obliging  and  acceptable  favor  of  the 
25th  June  reached  Paddington,  I  had  just  left  it,  to  go  on  a 
long  tour  into  Germany  and  France,  from  which  I  returned 
late  in  October.  Your  letter  was  delivered  to  a  most  valu- 
able and  confidential  friend,  William  Stevens,  Esq.,  who  is 
also  the  friend  of  all  your  friends.  Mr.  Stevens  tells  me  he 
acquainted  you  with  my  absence,  which,  I  hope,  would  apol- 
ogize for  my  not  having  sooner  thanked  you  for  what  I 
really  consider  as  a  very  great  favor. 

No  doubt  you  have  long  ago  heard  of  good  Bishop  Sea- 
bury's  arrival,  and  most  affectionate  reception  among  the 
poor  scattered  sheep  of  yonder  wilderness.  He  carries  him- 
self with  such  a  steady  prudence,  as  to  have  commanded  the 
respect  of  even  the  nipst  spiteful  ill-willers  of  his  order ;  and 
wilh"  all  the  countless  difficulties  he  has  to  encounter,  yet  by 
the  blessing  of  God  on  his  firm  mind,  there  is,  I  trust,  little 
doubt  that  the  church  will  grow  under  his  pastoral  care.  I 
have  as  yet  heard  only  of  his  having  ordained  five  presby- 
ters, one  or  more  of  whom  are  from  the  Southern  States, 
which  I  mention,  as  considering  it  as  an  acknowledgment  of 
his  powers,  even  beyond  the  limits  of  his  professed  district. 

A  general  convention  of  the  Episcopal  Clergy  of  all  North 
America,  made  up  of  an  equal  proportion  of  lay  members, 
was  to  meet  in  Philadelphia  about  Michaelmas,  to  form 
some  general  plan  for  the  whole  Episcopal  Church.  Dr. 
Seabury,  I  have  understood,  though  not  from  himself,  was 
invited  and  pressed  to  attend  this  meeting ;  but  he  very  pru- 
dently declined  it,  as,  from  its  motley  composition,  he  could 
not  be  sure  of  things  being  conducted  as  they  ought.  He 
will  be  there,  however,  or  has  been  there  (and  Dr.  Chandler 
also),  with  his  advice  and  influence ;  and  this  is  the  only 
reason  I  have  to  form  any  hopes  of  any  good  coming  from 
the  meeting. 

I  hear  of  some  very  alarming  symptoms  attending  the 
poor  church  in  the  Southern  States.  The  few  Episcopal 
Clergymen  left  there  are  not,  as  you  may  imagine,  men  the 
most  distinguished  for  abilities  or  worth.  The  enemies  of 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  203 

the  Church  see  this,  and  avail  themselves  of  it.  I  have  sun- 
dry late  letters  from  thence,  which  all  speak,  far  too  confi- 
dently, of  some  wild  purpose  of  forming  a  coalition  (too  like 
some  other  coalitions)  between  the  Episcopalians  and  Pres- 
byterians. I  have,  by  every  means  in  my  power,  put  those 
over  whom  I  have  any  influence,  in  my  old  neighborhood  of 
Virginia  and  Maryland,  on  their  guard  against  a  measure 
which  I  cannot  but  deem  insidious,  and  therefore  likely  to 
be  fatal.  And  I  have  also  called  in  the  aid  of  those  stout 
champions,  Drs.  Chandler  and  Seabury.  God  grant  that  our 
united  efforts  may  all  avail !  It  adds  not  a  little  to  my  ap- 
prehensions, that  all  these  things  are  carrying  on  within  the 
vortex  of  Dr.  S — th's  immediate  influence,  who  is  bent  on 
being  a  Bishop,  "  per  fas  aut  nefas,"  and  who,  if  he  cannot 
otherwise  compass  his  end,  will  assuredly  unite  with  the 

P ns;  and  so  Herod  and  Pontius  Pilate  shall  again  be 

made  friends ! 

You  may  not  perhaps  have  heard,  as  I  have,  that  he  af- 
fected to  be  much  pleased  with  Dr.  Seabury's  having  re- 
turned to  America,  invested  with  the  Episcopal  character, 
all  which  will  be  abundantly  explained  to  you  when  I  fur- 
ther inform  you  of  his  having  found  out  that  one  Bishop 
alone  may,  in  certain  cases,  consecrate  another.  The  Eng- 
lish of  this  is  plain,  and  may  account  for  your  not  having 
seen  him  in  Scotland !  The  case  is  a  ticklish  one,  and  will 
require  poor  Seabury's  utmost  skill  to  manage.  He  knows 
S — th  well,  and,  of  course,  thinks  of  him  as  we  all  do. 
Yet,  if  S — th  is  thus  properly  consecrated,  such  is  his  influ- 
ence, it  may  be  the  means  of  preventing  that  sad  state  of 
things  in  Virginia  and  Maryland  which  I  hinted  at  above. 
Yet  it  is  dreadful  to  think  of  having  such  a  man  in  such  a 
station  !  I  daily  expect  further  and  fuller  accounts,  and,  on 
your  signifying  that  it  will  not  be  disagreeable  to  you,  I 
shall  have  much  pleasure  in  communicating  them. 

Bishop  Skinner  waited  scarcely  a  month  before  he 
acknowledged  this  letter  and  responded  to  the  senti- 


204  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

ments  of  Mr.  Boucher.  He  was  jealous  for  the  cause 
of  Episcopacy,  and  somewhat  alarmed  at  the  irreg- 
ularities which  appeared  to  be  springing  up  in  the 
Southern  States.  He  could  not,  as  he  understood 
them,  reconcile  their  ecclesiastical  proceedings  with 
a  determination  to  settle  their  Church  on  a  pure  and 
primitive  basis,  and  to  regulate  their  polity  as  well 
as  their  doctrine  and  worship  according  to  apostolic 
institution.  His  fears  about  the  course  of  one  of  his 
countrymen,  who  had  come  into  a  position  of  influence 
in  America,  had  not  yet  subsided.  But  let  his  an- 
swer speak  for  itself  :  — 

ABERDEEN,  January  4,  1786. 

I  acknowledge,  with  much  satisfaction,  the  favor  of  your 
obliging  letter  of  6th  December,  which  I  received  with  the 
greater  pleasure,  as  the  intimation  given  by  your  friend  Mr. 
Stevens  of  your  absence  had  unluckily  not  come  to  my  hand. 
The  accounts  of  good  Bishop  Seabury's  favorable  reception 
in  America,  you  may  believe,  were  highly  agreeable  to  me, 
and  my  brethren  of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  this  country ; 
and  though  as  yet  we  have  not  had  these  accounts  confirmed 
under  his  own  hand,  we  have  no  doubt  but  that  a  little  time 
will  bring  us  these  refreshing  tidings,  and  open  up  a  happy 
correspondence  between  the  pastors  of  the  truly  "little 
flock  "  here,  and  those  of  the  "  many  scattered  sheep  of  yon- 
der wilderness."  I  observed  in  the  newspapers  the  other  day 
a  paragraph  as  quoted  from  the  "  Maryland  Journal,"  which 
gives  no  more,  I  hope,  than  a  true  account  of  our  worthy 
friend's  proceedings,  and  the  honorable  reception  he  has  met 
with.  The  description  you  give  of  the  alarming  symptoms 
appearing  in  the  Southern  States  is  indeed  very  affecting, 
and  shows  such  a  miserable  deficiency  in  point  of  knowl- 
edge, as  well  as  zeal,  among  the  Episcopal  Clergy  in  those 
parts,  as  could  hardly  have  been  suspected  among  any  who 
had  received  regular  Episcopal  ordination.  It  gives  me 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  205 

some  comfort  to  hear  that  such  able  advocates  for  primi- 
tive truth  and  order  as  Dr.  Chandler  and  yourself  are  step- 
ping forth  in  opposition  to  the  wild,  undigested  schemes  of 
modern  sectaries.  God,  of  his  mercy,  grant  success  to  your 
endeavors  in  so  good  a  cause,  and  raise  up  many  such  to 
strengthen  the  hands  of  his  faithful  servant,  the  Bishop  of 
Connecticut,  while  he  stands  single  in  the  great  work  he  has 
undertaken.  But  is  there  no  prospect  of  his  getting  some 
fellow-workers  of  his  own  order,  to  assist  him  in  stemming 
that  torrent  of  irregularity  which  seems  to  be  pouring  down 
upon  him  from  the  Southern  States  ?  What  you  mention  of 
my  countryman,  Dr.  S — th,  is  too  much  of  a  piece  with  his 
former  conduct,  and  plainly  shows  what  some  people  will  do 
to  compass  the  end  they  have  in  view. 

As  to  what  the  Doctor  has  found  out  in  favor  of  a  sin- 
gular consecration,  I  know  nothing  that  can  justify  such  a 
measure  but  absolute  necessity,  which  in  his  case  cannot  be 
pleaded,  because,  in  whatever  way  the  Scottish  Bishops 
might  treat  an  application  in  his  behalf,  there  is  no  reason 
to  doubt  of  their  readily  concurring  in  any  proper  plan  for 
increasing  the  number  of  Bishops  in  America.  And  as  Dr. 
Seabury  must  be  sufficiently  sensible  of  their  good  inclina- 
tions that  way,  I  hope  he  will  be  the  better  able  to  resist  the 
introduction  of  any  disorderly  measure  which  might  be  made 
a  precedent  for  future  irregularities,  and  be  attended  with 
the  worst  of  consequences  to  the  cause  of  Episcopacy.  If 
S — th  must  be  promoted  to  the  Episcopate  at  all  hazards, 
let  him  at  least  wait  until  there  be  a  canonical  number  of 
Bishops  in  America  for  that  purpose.  That  thus,  whatever 
objections  may  be  made  to  the  man,  there  may  be  none  to 
the  manner  of  his  promotion. 

You  will  oblige  me  much  by  communicating,  from  time  to 
time,  what  accounts  you  receive  of  these  matters,  as  I  shall 
always  be  anxious  to  hear  of  our  worthy  friend  in  Connecti- 
cut, and  how  things  fare  with  him  and  the  cause  which  he 
has  undertaken  to  support.  And  although  I  shall  have  lit- 
tle to  say  in  return  worthy  of  your  notice,  I  shall  not  fail  to 


206  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

acknowledge  the  continuance  of  your  correspondence  as  a 
very  singular  favor. 

We  have  been  lately  flattered  with  the  prospect  of  some 
friendly  notice  from  the  Church  of  England,  and  are  told 
that  at  a  convenient  season  it  is  intended  to  do  us  some  serv- 
ice with  the  people  in  power.  An  anonymous  letter  to  this 
purpose,  signed  "  A  Dignified  Clergyman  of  the  Church  of 
England,"  was  last  summer  transmitted  to  our  Primus, 

Bishop  Kilgour,  at  Peterhead.  I  wrote  to  Dr.  B ,  at 

Canterbury,  wishing  to  know  if  he  could  inform  us  who  the 
author  might  be  ;  or  what  ground  there  appeared  to  him  for 
the  assurances  which  the  letter  contains ;  but  as  yet  I  have 
received  no  satisfactory  reply.  Thus  kept  in  the  dark,  it  is 
no  wonder  if  sometimes  we  mistake  friends  for  enemies,  and 
behave  to  them  as  such,  not  knowing  whom  to  trust,  or 
where  to  look  for  that  relief  which  the  distressed  condition 
of  our  church  has  so  long  called  for  in  vain.  God  pity  and 
protect  us,  and  support  his  church  in  all  places  where  the 
hand  of  the  oppressor  lies  heavy  on  it ! 

Wishing  to  hear  from  you  as  often  as  convenient,  I  am, 
with  great  regard,  etc. 

Bishop  Seabury  landed  at  Newport,  E.  L,  after  a 
voyage  of  three  months,  Monday,  June  20,  1785, 
and  the  next  Sunday  he  preached  in  Trinity  Church 
the  first  sermon  of  an  American  bishop  in  this  coun- 
try, from  Hebrews  xii.  1,  2.  More  than  half  a  cent- 
ury prior  to  this,  a  great  dignitary  of  the  Church  of 
England,  Dean  Berkeley,  after  a  voyage  of  nearly 
five  months  from  Gravesend,  arrived  at  the  same 
port,  and  preached  many  times  in  the  same  church, 
which  is  still  standing.  The  missions  of  these  men 
had  many  points  of  resemblance ;  but  while  one, 
after  a  trial  of  more  than  two  years  and  a  half,  failed 
to  accomplish  his  heroic  object,  and  returned  to  the 
land  of  his  birth  to  be  honored  with  a  mitre  in  the 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  207 

see  of  Cloyne,  the  other  was  blessed  in  his  work  and 
lived  to  behold  the  Church  in  America  united  in  the 
adoption  of  a  revised  Liturgy,  and  settled  upon  the 
old  "  foundation  of  the  apostles  and  prophets,  Jesus 
Christ  himself  being  the  chief  corner-stone." 

Bishop  Seabury  reached  New  London,  the  place 
of  his  destination,  Monday  evening,  June  27th,  and 
writing  a  month  later  to  John  Bivington,  St.  Paul's 
Churchyard,  he  said  :  "  I  found  my  family  in  good 
health,  and  my  reception  such  as  I  could  wish  it." 
And  again  on  the  25th  of  August,  he  wrote  to  the 
same  gentleman  :  "I  am  as  comfortably  situated  here 
as  I  have  a  right  to  expect,  and  am  treated  by  the 
inhabitants  with  attention  and  regard.  This  I  men- 
tion because  I  flatter  myself  you  will  for  my  sake  be 
pleased  to  hear  it."  The  Episcopal  church  in  New 
London  was  destroyed  when  the  town  was  burnt  dur- 
ing the  Revolution,  but  the  parsonage  of  the  parish, 
begun  in  1745  at  the  instance  of  the  Society  for  the 
Propagation  of  the  Gospel,  and  located  on  a  distant 
street,  escaped,  and  was  the  residence  of  Bishop  Sea- 
bury  during  his  Episcopate. 

He  lost  no  time  in  communicating  with  his  clergy. 
The  first  letter  which  he  wrote  after  coming  to  the 
end  of  his  journey  was  addressed  to  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Jarvis,  who  had  acted  as  their  secretary,  and  was 
dated 


LONDON,  June  29,  1785. 

MY  VERY  DEAR  SIR,  —  I  have  the  pleasure  of  informing 
you  of  my  safe  arrival  here,  on  Monday  evening,  so  that  a 
period  is  put  to  my  long  and  tedious  absence.  I  long  much 
to  see  you,  and  flatter  myself  that  it  will  not  be  long  before 
you  will  do  me  the  favor  of  a  visit  here.  I  want  particu- 


208  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

larly  to  consult  with  you  on  the  time  and  place  of  the  cler- 
gy's meeting,  which  should  be  as  soon  as  is  practicable. 

My  regards  attend  Mrs.  Jarvis.  Accept  my  best  wishes, 
and  believe  me  to  be  your  affectionate,  humble  servant, 

SAMUEL  SEABUBY. 

The  clergy  assembled  in  Middletown  on  the  2d  of 
August,  and  eleven  were  present,  with  the  Kev.  Ben- 
jamin Moore,  from  New  York,  and  the  Rev.  Samuel 
Parker,  from  Boston.  James  Scovill,  Samuel  An- 
drews, and  Richard  Samuel  Clark  were  not  in  attend- 
ance, having  previously  removed  to  new  missions  in 
the  British  Provinces.  It  was  a  joyful  meeting,  and 
the  first  step  was  to  organize,  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Lea- 
rning, rector  of  Christ  Church,  Stratford,  as  usual, 
was  chosen  president,  and  Mr.  Jarvis,  secretary.  The 
ceremonial  of  the  reception  of  the  bishop  was  simple 
and  impressive,  for  according  to  the  minutes,  "  The 
Right  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  Seabury  attended  upon  this 
convention,  and  his  letters  of  consecration  being  re- 
quested by  the  same,  they  were  produced  and  read." 

The  next  morning  the  clergy  reassembled  at  eight 
o'clock,  and  after  their  address  to  the  bishop  had 
been  reconsidered  and  approved,  they  repaired  to  the 
church,  and  appointed  four  of  their  number  to  re- 
turn to  the  parsonage  with  a  declaration  to  the  bish- 
op that  they  confirmed  their  former  election  of  him, 
and  now  acknowledged  and  received  him  as  their 
Episcopal  head.  Two  of  the  four  immediately  car- 
ried back  to  the  convention  the  answer  of  accept- 
ance by  the  bishop,  while  the  other  two  followed  in 
attendance  upon  him  and  conducted  him  to  the 
church.  He  was  seated  in  his  chair  in  the  chancel 
and  the  clergy  were  gathered  in  a  group  before  him, 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  209 

when  the  Kev.  Mr.  Hubbard  read  the  following  ad- 
dress of  congratulation  and  formal  recognition :  — 

To  THE  RIGHT  REVEREND  FATHER  IN  GOD,  SAMUEL, 
BY  DIVINE  PROVIDENCE,  BISHOP  OF  THE  EPISCOPAL 
CHURCH  IN  CONNECTICUT. 

The  Address  of  sundry  of  the  Episcopal  Clergy  in  the  State 
of  Connecticut. 

REVEREND  FATHER,  —  We,  who  have  hereunto  sub- 
scribed our  names,  in  behalf  of  ourselves,  and  other  pres- 
byters of  the  Episcopal  Church,  embrace  with  pleasure  this 
early  opportunity  of  congratulating  you  on  your  safe  return 
to  your  native  country  ;  and  on  the  accomplishment  of  that 
arduous  enterprise  in  which,  at  our  desire,  you  engaged. 
Devoutly  do  we  adore  and  reverently  thank  the  Great  Head 
of  the  Church,  that  he  has  been  pleased  to  preserve  you 
through  a  long  and  dangerous  voyage ;  that  he  has  crowned 
your  endeavors  with  success,  and  now  at  last  permits  us  to 
enjoy,  under  you,  the  long  and  ardently  desired  blessing  of  a 
pure,  valid,  and  free  Episcopacy :  a  blessing  which  we  re- 
ceive as  the  precious  gift  of  God  himself ;  and  humbly  hope 
that  the  work  he  has  so  auspiciously  begun,  he  will  confirm 
and  prosper,  and  make  it  a  real  benefit  to  our  Church,  not 
only  in  this  state,  but  in  the  American  states  in  general,  by 
uniting  them  in  doctrine,  discipline,  and  worship ;  by  sup- 
porting the  cause  of  Christianity  against  all  its  opposers ; 
and  by  promoting  piety,  peace,  concord  and  mutual  affection, 
among  all  denominations  of  Christians. 

Whatever  can  be  done  by  us,  for  the  advancement  of  so 
good  a  work,  shall  be  done  with  united  attention,  and  the 
exertion  of  our  best  abilities.  And  as  you  are  now,  by 
our  voluntary  and  united  suffrages  (signified  to  you,  first  at 
New  York,  in  April,  1783,  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Jarvis,  and  now 
ratified  and  confirmed  in  this  present  convention)  elected 
Bishop  of  that  branch  of  the  catholic  and  apostolic  Church 
to  which  we  belong :  We,  in  the  presence  of  Almighty  God, 

14 


210  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

declare  to  the  world,  that  we  do  unanimously  and  volunta- 
rily accept,  receive,  and  recognize  you  to  be  our  Bishop,  su- 
preme in  the  government  of  the  Church,  and  in  the  admin- 
istration of  all  ecclesiastical  offices.  And  we  do  solemnly 
engage  to  render  you  all  that  respect,  duty,  and  submission, 
which  we  believe  do  belong,  and  are  due  to  your  high  office, 
and  which,  we  understand,  were  given  by  the  presbyters  to 
their  Bishop  in  the  primitive  Church,  while,  in  her  native 
purity,  she  was  unconnected  with,  and  uncontrolled  by  any 
secular  power. 

The  experience  of  many  years  had  long  ago  convinced  the 
whole  body  of  the  clergy,  and  many  of  the  lay  members  of 
our  communion,  of  the  necessity  there  was  of  having  resi- 
dent Bishops  among  us.  Fully  and  publicly  was  our  cause 
pleaded,  and  supported  by  such  arguments  as  must  have  car- 
ried conviction  to  the  minds  of  all  candid  and  liberal  men. 
They  were,  however,  for  reasons  which  we  are  unable  to  as- 
sign, neglected  by  our  superiors  in  England.  Some  of  those 
arguments  were  drawn  from  our  being  members  of  the  na- 
tional Church,  and  subjects  of  the  British  government. 
These  lost  their  force,  upon  the  separation  of  this  country 
from  Great  Britain,  by  the  late  peace.  Our  case  became 
thereby  more  desperate,  and  our  spiritual  necessities  were 
much  increased.  Filial  affection  still  induced  us  to  place 
confidence  in  our  parent  Church  and  country,  whose  liber- 
ality and  benevolence  we  had  long  experienced,  and  do  most 
gratefully  acknowledge.  To  this  Church  was  our  immediate 
application  directed,  earnestly  requesting  a  Bishop  to  collect, 
govern,  and  continue  our  scattered,  wandering,  and  sinking 
Church  ;  and  great  was,  and  still  continues  to  be  our  surprise, 
that  a  request  so  reasonable  in  itself,  so  congruous  to  the  nat- 
ure and  government  of  that  Church,  and  begging  for  an 
officer  so  absolutely  necessary  in  the  Church  of  Christ,  as 
they  and  we  believe  a  Bishop  to  be,  should  be  refused.  We 
hope  that  the  successors  of  the  Apostles  in  the  Church  of 
England  have  sufficient  reasons  to  justify  themselves  to  the 
world  and  to  God.  We,  however,  know  of  none  such,  nor 
can  our  imagination  frame  any. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  211 

But  blessed  be  God !  another  door  was  opened  for  you. 
In  the  mysterious  economy  of  his  Providence  he  had  pre- 
served the  remamsjof  the  old  Episcopal  Church  of  Scotland, 
under  all  the  malice  and  persecutions  of  its  enemies.  In  the 
school  of  adversity,  its  pious  and  venerable  BishopsTiacl 
learned  to  renounce  the  pomps  and  grandeur  of  the  world; 
arid  were  ready  to  do  the  work  of  their  heavenly  Father. 
As  outcasts,  they  pitied  us ;  as  faithful  holders  of  the  apos- 
tolical commission,  what  they  had  freely  received  they  freely 
gave.  From  them  we  have  received  a  free,  valid,  and  purely 
ecclesiastical  Episcopacy,  are  thereby  made  complete  in  all 
our  parts,  and  have  a  right  to  be  considered  as  a  Jiving,  and, 
we  hope  through  God's  grace  shall  be,  a  vigorous  branch  of 
thej^afcholic  .Church. 

To  these  venerable  fathers  our  sincerest  thanks  are  due, 
and  they  have  them  most  fervidly.  May  the  Almighty  be 
their  rewarder,  regard  them  in  mercy,  support  them  under 
the  persecutions  of  their  enemies,  and  turn  the  hearts  of 
their  persecutors ;  and  make  their  simplicity  and  godly  sin- 
cerity known  unto  all  men  !  And  wherever  the  American 
Episcopal  Church  shall  be  mentioned  in  the  world,  may  this 
good  deed,  which  they  have  done  for  us,  be  spoken  of  for  a 
memorial  of  them ! 

JEREMIAH  LEAMING, 
RICHARD  MANSFIELD, 
ABRAHAM  JARYIS, 
BELA  HUBBARD, 
JOHN  R.  MARSHALL, 

and  others. 
MIDDLETOWN,  August  3,  1785. 


BISHOP  SEABURY'S  ANSWER. 

REVEREND  BRETHREN,  BELOVED  IN  OUR  LORD  JESUS 
CHRIST,  —  I  heartily  thank  you  for  your  kind  congratula- 
tions on  my  safe  return  to  my  native  country  ;  and  cordially 
join  with  you  in  your  joy,  and  thanks  to  Almighty  God,  for 


212  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

the  success  of  that  important  business,  which  j^our  applica- 
tion excited  me  to  undertake.  May  God  enable  us  all  to 
do  everything  with  a  view  to  his  glory,  and  the  good  of  his 
Church ! 

Accept  of  my  acknowledgments  for  the  assurances  you 
give  me  of  exerting  your  best  abilities,  to  promote  the  wel- 
fare, not  only  of  our  own  Church,  but  of  common  Christian- 
ity, and  the  peace  and  mutual  affection  of  all  denominations 
of  Christians.  In  so  good  a  work,  I  trust,  you  will  never 
find  me  either  backward  or  negligent. 

I  should,  most  certainly,  be  very  apprehensive  of  sinking 
under  the  weight  of  that  high  office  to  which  I  have  been, 
under  God's  Providence,  raised  by  your  voluntary  and  free 
election,  did  I  not  assure  myself  of  your  ready  advice  and  as- 
sistance in  the  discharge  of  its  important  duties;  grateful, 
therefore,  to  me,  must  be  the  assurances  you  give,  of  sup- 
porting the  authority  of  your  Bishop  upon  the  true  princi- 
ples of  flie  primitive  Church,  before  it  was  controlled  and 
corrupted  by  secular  connections  and  worldly  policy.  Let 
me  entreat  your  prayers  to  our  supreme  Head,  for  the  con- 
tinual presence  of  his  Holy  Spirit,  that  I  may  in  all  things 
do  his  blessed  will. 

The  surprise  you  express  at  the  rejection  of  your  applica- 
tion in  England  is  natural.  But  where  the  ecclesiastical  and 
civil  constitutions  are  so  closely  woven  together  as  they  are 
in  that  country,  the  first  characters  in  the  Church,  for  sta- 
tion and  merit,  may  find  their  good  dispositions  rendered 
ineffectual,  by  the  intervention  of  the  civil  authority;  and 
whether  it  is  better  to  submit  quietly  to  this  state  of  things 
in  England,  or  to  risk  that  confusion  which  would  probably 
ensue,  should  an  amendment  be  attempted,  demands  serious 
consideration. 

The  sentiments  you  entertain  of  the  venerable  Bishops  in 
Scotland  are  highly  pleasing  to  me.  Their  conduct  through 
the  whole  business  was  candid,  friendly,  and  Christian  ;  ap- 
pearing to  me  to  arise  from  a  just  sense  of  duty,  and  to  be 
founded  in,  and  conducted  by  the  true  principles  of  the 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  213 

primitive,  apostolical  Church.  And  I  hope  you  will  join 
with  me  in  manifestations  of  gratitude  to  them,  by  always 
keeping  up  the  most  intimate  communion  with  them  and 
their  suffering  Church. 

SAMUEL,  Bp.  Upl.  Ch.  Connect. 

MIDDLETOWN,  August  3,  1785. 

The  bishop  having  finished  reading  his  reply,  the 
clergy  kneeled  down  at  the  chancel  rail  and  received 
the  apostolic  blessing.  The  occasion  was  an  extraor- 
dinary one,  and  as  the  order  of  procedure,  after  the 
ceremony  of  the  addresses  had  been  concluded,  dif- 
fered somewhat  from  the  present  manner  of  ordain- 
ing deacons,  it  may  be  well  to  give  the  minutes  as 
we  find  them :  "  Then  the  clergy  retired  to  their 
pews,  and  the  bishop  began  divine  service  with  the 
Litany,  according  to  the  rubric  in  the  office  for  the 
ordination  of  deacons;  the  four  following  persons, 
Messrs.  Vandyke,  Shelton,  .Baldwin  of  Connecticut, 
and  Mr.  Ferguson  of  Maryland,  being  present  to 
be  admitted  to  that  order.  The  Litany  being  ended, 
Mr.  Bowden  read  the  first  communion  service.  The 
bishop  then  read  the  service,  consecrated  the  ele- 
ments, and  administered  the  bread.  Mr.  Bowden  as- 
sisted by  administering  the  cup.  The  communion  be- 
ing finished,  the  bishop  proceeded  to  the  ordination. 
Mr.  Jarvis  officiated  as  arch-deacon.  After  the  ordi- 
nation a  sermon  was  preached  by  the  Eev.  Mr.  Lea- 
rning, and  the  congregation  wras  dismissed  by  the 
bishop.  From  the  church,  the  clergy,  preceded  by 
the  bishop,  returned  to  the  parsonage." 

There,  after  thanks  had  been  given  to  Mr.  Lea- 
rning for  his  sermon,  and  a  copy  of  it  requested  for 
publication,  "  the  bishop  dissolved  the  convention  and 


214  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

directed  the  clergy  to  meet  him  at  five  o'clock  in 
convocation."  They  had  assembled  in  what  were  de- 
nominated conventions  annually  or  oftener,  for  many 
years ;  but  this  was  the  first  convocation,  the  first  in- 
stance of  their  being  convoked  by  a  bishop.  It  was 
here  the  same  body  acting  not  so  much  in  a  legis- 
lative capacity  as  in  consultations  about  liturgical 
changes  and  future  ecclesiastical  measures. 

At  eleven  o'clock  A.  M.,  on  Thursday,  the  fourth 
day  of  August,  divine  service  was  held  in  the  church, 
when  "  Mr.  Parker  read  prayers  and  Mr.  Moore 
preached  a  sermon,  after  which  the  bishop  delivered 
a  charge  to  the  clergy."  Mr.  Parker  had  come  from 
the  clergy  of  Massachusetts  with  instructions  which 
he  presented  to  the  convocation  and  which  were  sub- 
stantially these :  "  to  collect  the  sentiments  of  the 
Connecticut  clergy  in  respect  of  Dr.  Seabury's  Epis- 
copal consecration,  the  regulation  of  his  Episcopal  ju- 
risdiction," and  to  indicate  "  their  thoughts  of  con- 
necting themselves  with  them  under  his  Episcopal 
charge."  The  communication  was  received  with  the 
warmest  expressions  of  welcome  and  of  a  desire  on 
the  part  of  the  Connecticut  clergy  for  a  union  with 
their  brethren  of  Massachusetts. 

The  next  day,  "  after  appointing  Mr.  Bowden,  Mr. 
Parker,  and  Mr.  Jarvis  as  a  committee  to  consider  of, 
and  make  with  the  bishop  some  alterations  in  the 
Liturgy  needful  for  the  present  use  of  the  Church, 
the  convocation  adjourned  to  meet  again  at  New  Ha- 
ven in  September."  This  committee  and  the  bishop 
still  lingered  in  Middletown,  and  entered  carefully 
upon  the  duties  of  their  appointment.  On  Sunday, 
Mr.  Ferguson  was  advanced  to  the  priesthood,  Mr. 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  215 

Parker,  Mr.  Bowden,  and  Mr.  Jarvis  attending  as 
presbyters  5  and  Mr.  Thomas  Fitch  Oliver,  of  Provi- 
dence, R.  I.,  was  admitted  on  the  same  day  to  the 
order  of  deacons. 

Such  is  a  brief  account  of  the  proceedings  at  the 
first  meeting  of  the  first  American  bishop  with  his 
clergy.  The  sermon  of  Mr.  Learning1  was  full  of 
wise  counsels  addressed  to  his  brethren,  and,  coming 
from  one  so  venerable  in  years  and  so  borne  down 
with  the  burden  of  varied  trials,  must  have  had  a  be- 
nign influence  upon  their  minds.  While  it  breathed 
with  the  spirit  of  charity,  it  insisted  that  they  were  to 
proceed  with  the  coolest  deliberation,  and  the  firmest 
resolution.  "  The  providence  of  God,"  said  he,  "  was 
not  more  conspicuous  in  preparing  the  world  for  the 
reception  of  the  gospel  at  the  first,  than  it  has  been 
in  bringing  about  a  method  for  perpetuating  the 
Church  in  this  State.  This  might  be  painted  in  the 
most  lively  colors,  and  in  the  most  striking  manner. 
....  I  have  the  pleasure  to  see  the  day  when  there 
is  a  bishop  here,  to  act  as  a  true  father  towards  his 
clergy,  supporting  their  dignity,  as  well  as  his  own ; 
to  govern  them  with  impartiality,  as  well  as  lenity ; 
and  to  admit  none  to  the  altar  by  ordination  but  the 
worthy  ;  to  uphold  a  Church  beaten  with  storms  on 
every  side ;  to  support  a  Church  that  has  been  a  bul- 
wark against  infidelity  on  the  one  hand,  and  Romish 
superstition  on  the  other.  But  by  the  divine  provi- 
dence it  has  continued  to  this  day." 

1  The  addresses,  the  sermon  of  Mr.  Learning,  and  the  charge  of  the 
bishop,  with  a  list  of  the  consecration  and  succession  of  SCOTTISH  BISH- 
OPS since  the  Revolution,  1688,  under  William  III.,  to  1784,  were  printed 
in  a  pamphlet  of  forty  pages,  of  which  there  was  an  American  and  a 
Scotch  edition.  The  charge  is  reprinted  from  the  Edinburgh  edition. 


216  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

The  charge  of  the  bishop  is  of  great  importance, 
both  in  its  teachings  and  in  its  connection  with 
American  Episcopacy,  and  therefore  it  is  given  in 
full,  as  follows  :  — 

REV.  BKETHEEN,  BELOVED  IN  OUR  LOUD  JESUS  CHRIST, 
—  It  is  with  very  great  and  sincere  pleasure  that  I  meet  you 
here  at  this  time,  and  on  this  occasion ;  and  I  heartily  thank 
God,  our  heavenly  Father,  for  the  joyful  and  happy  oppor- 
tunity with  which  his  good  providence  has  favored  us  ;  and 
do  beseech  him  to  direct  and  prosper  all  our  consultations 
and  endeavors  to  his  glory,  and  the  benefit  of  his  Church. 

At  your  desire,  and  by  your  appointment,  I  consented  to 
undertake  a  voyage  to  England,  to  endeavor  to  obtain  those 
Episcopal  powers,  whose  want  has  ever  been  severely  felt, 
and  deeply  lamented  by  the  thinking  part  of  our  communion. 
The  voyage  has  been  long  and  tedious,  and  the  difficulties 
that  arose,  perplexing,  and  not  easily  surmountable ;  yet,  by 
the  favor  of  God,  the  important  business  has  been  happily 
accomplished ;  and  the  blessing  of  a  free,  valid,  and  purely 
ecclesiastical  Episcopacy  procured  to  our  infant  Church ; 
which  is  now  completely  organized  in  all  its  parts ;  and,  be- 
ing nourished  by  sincerity  and  truth,  will,  we  trust,  under 
the  guidance  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  grow  up  into  him  in  all 
things,  which  is  the  head,  even  Christ :  From  whom  the  whole 
body  fitly  joined  together,  and  compacted  by  that  which  every 
joint  supplieth,  according  to  the  effectual  working  in  the 
measure  of  every  part,  will  make  increase  of  the  body,  unto 
the  edifying  of  itself  in  love.1 

As,  under  God,  the  Bishops  of  the  remainder  of  the  old 
Episcopal  Church  of  Scotland,  which,  at  the  Revolution,  fell 
a  sacrifice  to  the  jealous  apprehensions  of  William  III.,  were 
the  sole  instruments  of  accomplishing  this  happy  work ;  to 
them  our  utmost  gratitude  is  due;  and  I  hope  the  sense  of 
fRe*  benefit  we  have,  through  their  hands,  received,  will  ever 
remain  fresh  in  the  minds  of  all  the  members  of  our  com- 
munion to  the  latest  posterity. 

1  Eph.  iv.  15,  16. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  217 

Under  the  greatest  persecutions,  God  has  preserved  them 
to  this  day,  and  I  trust  will  preserve  them ;  that  there  may 
yet  be  some  to  whom  destitute  Churches  may  apply  in  their 
spiritual  wants;  some  faithful  shepherds  of  Christ's  flock, 
who  are  willing  to  give  freely  what  they  have  freely  re- 
ceived from  their  Lord  and  Master. 

With  us  then,  my  venerable  Brethren,  it  remains  to  make 
this  precious  gift  which  we  have  received  conducive  to  the 
glory  of  God,  and  the  good  of  his  Church.  Long  have  we 
earnestly  desired  to  enjoy  the  full  advantage  of  our  religious 
constitution ;  let  us  then  carefully  improve  it,  to  all  those 
holy  purposes  for  which  it  was  originally  designed  by  our 
Divine  Head,  the  august  Redeemer  of  sinful  men. 

Sensible  as  I  am  of  my  own  deficiencies,  and  of  the  in- 
firmities of  human  nature,  I  shall,  by  God's  grace,  be  al- 
ways ready  to  do  my  duty,  according  to  my  best  ability  and 
discretion  ;  and,  I  trust,  I  shall  by  him  be  enabled  to  avoid 
everything  that  may  bring  a  reproach  on  our  holy  Religion, 
or  be  a  hindrance  to  the  increase  and  prosperity  of  that 
Church,  over  which  I  am,  by  God's  providence,  called  to 
preside.  On  your  advice  and  assistance,  reverend  Brethren, 
next  to  God's  grace,  I  must  rely  for  support  in  the  great 
work  that  is  before  me,  and  to  which  I  can  with  truth  say, 
I  have  devoted  myself  without  reserve.  Your  support,  I 
know,  I  shall  have;  and  I  hope  for  the  support  of  all  good 
men.  Let  us  then  trust  that  God  will  prosper  our  honest 
endeavors  to  serve  the  interests  of  his  Church,  and  to  make 
his  Gospel  effectual  to  the  conversion  of  sinners  to  him,  that 
their  souls  may  be  saved  by  the  Redemption  and  Mediation  of 
his  Son.  Worldly  views  can  here  have  no  influence  either  on 
you  or  me.  Loss,  and  not  gain,  may,  and  probably  will  be, 
the  consequence  of  the  step  we  have  taken  to  procure  for 
our  Church  the  blessing  we  now  enjoy.  But  however  our 
worldly  patrons  may  be  disposed  towards  us,  our  heavenly 
Father  knoweth  whereof  we  are  made,  and  of  what  things 
we  have  need  :  and  HE  is  able  to  open  his  hand,  and  fill  all 
things  living  with  plenteousness.1  Let  us  then  seek  first  his 
1  Psa.  cxlv.  16. 


218  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

kingdom,  and  the  righteousness  thereof,1  and  depend  upon 
the  gracious  promise  of  our  Redeemer,  that  all  things  neces- 
sary to  our  bodily  sustenance  shall,  in  the  course  of  his 
providence,  be  given  unto  us. 

In  our  endeavors  to  promote  the  interests  of  Christ's 
Church  in  this  world,  much  I  know  will  depend  upon  me : 
Much  also,  my  beloved  in  Christ,  will  depend  on  you.  Per- 
mit me  then,  in  this  my  first  Charge,  to  mention  two  or 
three  things  of  great  importance  in  themselves,  and  which 
require  your  immediate  attention. 

The  first  is,  The  obligations  you  are  all  under  to  be  very 
careful  of  the  doctrines  which  you  preach  from  the  pulpit,  or 
inculcate  in  conversation.  You  will  not  suppose  that  I  am 
finding  fault,  or  that  I  have  reason  so  to  do.  General  cau- 
tions of  this  kind  must  make  part  of  almost  all  the  charges 
from  a  Bishop  to  his  Clergy.  Should  any  Clergyman  be 
censurable  in  this  respect,  it  would  be  ungenerous  to  attack 
him  in  this  public  way,  and  unfair  to  correct  him  by  wound- 
ing the  body  of  his  brethren.  Should  such  a  case  ever  hap- 
pen, which  I  pray  God  never  may,  there  are  other  modes  of 
proceedings  more  likely  to  be  effectual,  and  which  therefore 
ought  to  be  adopted.  But  when  you  consider,  as  I  doubt 
not  you  do  often  and  seriously,  that  many  of  the  people  un- 
der your  care  have  little  or  no  other  instruction  in  religion 
but  what  they  get  from  you ;  that  the  care  of  their  souls  is 
by  Christ  and  his  Church  committed  to  you  ;  and  that  you 
must  give  an  awful  account  of  them  in  the  day  of  judgment, 
you  cannot  think  such  cautions  as  I  just  now  interposed  can 
at  this  or  at  any  other  time  be  either  impertinent  or  unnec- 
essary. You  are,  and  it  is  expected  of  the  people  that  they 
account  you  as  ministers  of  Christ,  and  stewards  of  the  mys- 
teries of  Grod  ;2  let  us  all  then  remember,  that  it  is  required 
of  stewards  that  a  man  be  found  faithful:  And  our  own 
hearts  will  inform  us,  that  the  first  instance  of  fidelity  is, 
that  the  pure  doctrines  of  the  Gospel  be  fairly  and  earnestly, 
and  affectionately  proposed,  explained,  and  inculcated ;  and 
1  Matt.  vi.  33.  2  1  Cor.  iv.  1,  2. 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  219 

that  we  suffer  nothing  else  to  usurp  their  place,  and  become 
the  subject  of  our  preaching. 

Another  matter,  which  my  duty  requires  me  to  mention, 
relates  to  a  business  in  which  you  will  probably  be  soon 
called  upon  to  act ;  I  mean  the  very  important  one  of  giving 
recommendations  to  candidates  for  Holy  Orders.  It  is  im- 
possible that  the  Bishop  should  be  personally  acquainted 
with  every  one  who  may  present  himself  for  ordination.  He 
must  therefore  depend  on  the  recommendation  of  his  Clergy, 
and  other  people  of  reputation,  for  the  character  and  quali- 
fications of  those  who  shall  be  presented  to  him.  By  qual- 
ifications I  mean  not  so  much  literary  accomplishments, 
though  these  are  not  to  be  neglected,  as  aptitude  for  the 
work  of  tfce  ministry.  You  must  be  sensible  that  a  man 
may  have,  and  deservedly  have  an  irreproachable  moral  char- 
acter, and  be  endued  with  pious  and  devout  affections,  and 
a  competent  share  of  human  learning;  and  yet,  from  want 
of  prudence,  or  from  deficiency  in  temper,  or  some  singu- 
larity in  disposition,  may  not  be  calculated  to  make  a  good 
Clergyman ;  for  to  be  a  good  Clergyman  implies,  among 
other  things,  that  a  man  be  a  useful  one.  A  Clergyman 
who  does  no  good,  always  does  hurt ;  there  is  no  medium. 
Not  only  the  moral  character,  and  learning,  and  abilities  of 
candidates,  are  to  be  exactly  inquired  into,  but  also  their 
good  temper,  prudence,  diligence,  and  everything  by  which 
their  usefulness  in  the  ministry  may  be  affected.  Nor  should 
their  personal  appearance,  voice,  manner,  clearness  of  expres- 
sion, and  facility  of  communicating  their  sentiments,  be  al- 
together overlooked.  These,  which  may  by  some  be  thought 
to  be  only  secondary  qualifications,  and  therefore  of  no  great 
importance,  are,  however,  those  that  will  require  your  more 
particular  attention,  and  call  for  all  your  prudence.  They 
who  shall  apply  for  recommendations  will  generally  be  such 
as  have  passed  through  a  course  of  academical  studies,  and 
must  be  competently  qualified  in  a  literary  view.  Exami- 
nation, .however,  will  ascertain  the  matter  with  sufficient 
certainty ;  and  it  is  improbable  that  the  openly  vicious,  or 


220  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

even  they  whose  characters  will  not  bear  to  be  scrutinized, 
will  ever  apply  for  your  testimonials :  but  should  they  be  so 
hardy,  the  matter  will  soon  be  decided.  You  cannot  recom- 
mend them,  and  there  is  an  end  of  it.  But  the  other  quali- 
fications I  mentioned,  good  temper,  prudence,  diligence,  ca- 
pacity and  aptitude  to  teach,  and  all  those  requisites  neces- 
sary to  make  a  worthy,  useful  clergyman,  may  probably  be 
sometimes  doubted.  And  then  a  question  arises,  whether 
such  a  person  ought  to  be  recommended  ?  The  general  con- 
sideration, that  a  Clergyman  should  be  useful  to  others,  and 
should  not  merely  consult  his  own  emolument,  but  the  ben- 
efit of  Christ's  Church  principally,  ought,  in  my  opinion, 
to  determine  this  point ;  and  if  there  be  real  ground  to  sus- 
pect that  a  person  will  not  make  a  useful  Clergyman,  what- 
ever his  moral  character  and  literary  attainments  may  be,  he 
ought  not  to  be  recommended.  He  may  serve  God  usefully 
and  acceptably  in  some  other  station  ;  and  he  cannot  justly 
esteem  it  an  injury,  that  he  was  not  admitted  to  a  station  in 
Christ's  Church,  where  the  probable  chance  was,  that  he 
would  do  more  harm  than  good.  It  is  always  easier  to  keep 
such  persons  out  of  the  ministry,  than  to  get  rid  of  them 
when  once  admitted.  Open  immorality  exposes  a  man  to 
the  public  censure  of  his  superiors,  and  he  may,  by  due  au- 
thority, be  deposed,  and  dismissed  from  the  ministry.  But 
a  Clergyman's  conduct  may  be  so  guarded,  as  to  be  always 
within  such  a  line  as  shall  screen  him  from  public  censure, 
and  yet  be  such  as  does  manifest  disservice  to  religion,  and 
brings  reproach  on  the  order  to  which  he  belongs ;  and  how- 
ever uneasy  you  may  be  with  having  him  in  your  number, 
no  fair  occasion  to  get  rid  of  him  may  ever  present  itself. 
Lay  hands  suddenly  on  no  man?-  was  one  of  the  things  St. 
Paul  gave  in  charge  to  Timothy,  whom  he  had  appointed 
Bishop  of  Ephesus  :  And  if  not  suddenly,  without  sufficient 
deliberation  and  trial,  certainly  not  in  doubtful  cases,  espe- 
cially where  the  probability  is  against  the  man,  with  respect 
to  his  usefulness  as  a  minister.  And  all  the  reasons  why 
*  1  Tim.  v.  22. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  221 

the  Bishop  should  lay  hands  suddenly  on  no  man,  are  so 
many  strong  arguments  against  recommending  any  man  sud- 
denly, or  in  doubtful  cases,  to  the  Bishop  for  ordination. 

The  third  thing  which  my  duty  calls  upon  me  to  mention 
to  you  at  this  time,  because  it  requires  your  immediate  at- 
tention, is  that  old  and  sacred  rite,  handed  down  to  us  from 
the  apostolic  age,  by  the  primitive  Church,  —  the  Laying  on 
of  hands  upon  those  who  have  been  baptized,  and,  by  proper 
authority,  admitted  into  the  Christian  Church,  and  which  is 
now  commonly  called  Confirmation  :  though,  in  truth,  there 
seems  to  me  to  be  more  in  the  rite  than  a  bare  confirmation 
of  the  baptismal  vow;  and  that  it  implies,  and  was  origi- 
nally understood  to  imply,  the  actual  communication  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  to  those  who  worthily  received  it. 

It  has  not  hitherto  been  in  the  power  of  the  members  of 
our  Church  to  comply  with  this  rite,  for  want  of  the  proper 
officer  to  administer  it :  and  we  trust  that  the  mercy  of  God 
will  pardon  those  omissions  of  duty  in  his  faithful  servants, 
which  arose  merely  from  the  necessity  of  their  situation. 
But  the  case  is  now  altered ;  and,  through  his  gracious 
providence,  that,  and  every  other  rite  and  ordinance  which 
he  has  instituted  for  the  government  and  edification  of  his 
Church,  may  be  obtained  and  enjoyed.  It  becomes  there- 
fore our  duty  to  attend  to  this  matter ;  and  as  it  is  unreason- 
able to  expect  that  people  should  comply  with  a  rite  before 
they  are  convinced  of  their  obligation  to  do  so,  it  lies  upon 
us  to  explain  to  them  its  nature  and  meaning,  the  foundation 
on  which  it  stands,  the  obligations  they  are  under  to  com- 
ply with  it,  and  the  benefits  they  will  receive  from  the  in- 
stitution, if  they  come  worthily  to  it ;  and  then,  it  is  to 
be  hoped,  there  will  be  no  backwardness  in  the  members  of 
our  Church  to  submit  to  it. 

It  is,  I  am  sensible,  unnecessary  to  point  out  to  you  the 
several  arguments  and  reasons  by  which  your  instructions  in 
this  point  may  be  supported.  You  have  undoubtedly  often 
and  seriously  reflected  on  them.  But  as  your  duty,  in  that 
respect,  is  now  to  be  more  particularly  regarded,  and  very 


222  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

soon  carried  into  execution,  permit  me,  by  way  of  remem- 
brance, to  make  a  few  general  observations  on  the  authority, 
nature,  and  benefits  of  the  institution. 

We  suppose,  and  I  think  justly,  that  the  rite  is  founded 
on  apostolical  practice.  In  Heb.  vi.  2,  St.  Paul  enumerates 
the  fundamental  principles  of  the  Christian  Religion,  such  as 
were  necessary  for  all  Christians,  viz.,  Repentance  from  dead 
works,  — faith  in  G-od,  —  the  doctrine  of  baptisms,  —  and  of 
laying  on  of  hands  —  and  of  the  resurrection  of  the  dead, 
and  of  eternal  life.  No  commentator  or  expositor  of  the 
holy  Scriptures  ever  understood  this  text  of  any  other  lay- 
ing on  of  hands,  but  that  in  confirmation,  till  since  the  Ref- 
ormation ;  and  the  celebrated  Calvin  himself  gives  it  as  his 
opinion,  that  this  one  text  shows  evidently,  that  Confirmation 
was  instituted  by  the  Apostles} 

In  the  8th  chapter  of  the  Acts  it  is  recorded,  that  when 
many  of  the  Samaritans  had  been  converted  and  baptized  by 
St.  Philip  the  deacon,  the  College  of  Apostles  at  Jerusalem 
sent  two  of  their  own  number,  Peter  and  John,  who,  when 
they  had  prayed  for  them,  that  they  might  receive  the  Holy 
Ghost,  laid  their  hands  on  them,  and  they  received  the  Holy 
Ghost. 

In  the  19th  chapter,  St.  Paul,  finding  some  disciples  at 
Ephesus  who  had  been  baptized  only  with  the  baptism  of 
John,  had  them  baptized  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus, 
and  when  he  had  laid  his  hands  upon  them,  the  Holy  Crhost 
came  on  them  ;  and  they  spake  with  tongues  and  prophesied. 

I  know  that  the  usual  way  of  evading  the  force  of  these 
last  two  authorities  is,  by  saying  that  this  imposition  of 
hands  was  for  the  sole  purpose  of  conferring  the  miraculous 
gifts  of  the  Holy  Spirit:  but  this  will  not  reach  the  first 
case,  where  St.  Paul  mentions  the  laying  on  of  hands  among 
the  rudiments  of  the  doctrines  of  the  gospel.  In  the  infancy 
of  Christianity,  extraordinary,  or  miraculous  gifts  were  nec- 
essary for  its  establishment  and  propagation  in  the  world. 
But  have  we  reason  sufficient  to  justify  the  opinion,  that  all 
1  Vid.  Calvin,  in  loc. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  223 

upon  whom  the  Apostles  laid  their  hands  received  these  mi- 
raculous powers  ?  Is  it  not  surprising  that  twelve  men  at 
Ephesus,  who  had  not  even  heard  that  there  was  any  Holy 
Ghost  till  St.  Paul's  visit,  should  be  pitched  upon  by  him 
for  receiving  these  extraordinary  gifts?  The  miraculous 
powers  of  the  Holy  Spirit  are  communicated  when,  and 
where,  and  how,  it  pleases  Infinite  Wisdom  :  And  veiy 
probably  St.  Paul  was  surprised  at  this  extraordinary  dis- 
play of  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit  upon  the  twelve  men 
at  Ephesus,  as  well  as  St.  Peter  had  been,  when  the  Holy 
Ghost  fell  upon  the  whole  company  of  Cornelius  to  whom 
he  was  preaching,  even  before  they  had  been  baptized.1 
Because  God  sometimes  departs  from  the  ordinary  institu- 
tions in  his  Church,  are  we  to  suppose  that  there  is  no  vir- 
tue in  those  ordinary  institutions,  except  when  God  shall 
please  to  accompany  them  with  miraculous  powers  ?  The 
Holy  Spirit  is  given  for  the  sanctification  of  the  heart,  and 
to  lead  all  those  who  will  be  governed  by  him,  from  one  de- 
gree of  holiness  to  another,  till  they  shall  become  fit  inhab- 
itants of  the  kingdom  of  Heaven ;  and,  in  truth,  there  is  as 
great  a  miracle  in  the  conversion  of  a  sinner  from  the  error 
of  his  ways,  as  in  speaking  with  tongues  and  prophesying. 
Both  are  beyond  the  power  of  nature,  and  both  require  Al- 
mighty interposition. 

In  Confirmation,  by  the  imposition  of  the  hands  of  the 
Bishop  and  prayer,  we  believe  the  Holy  Spirit  to  be  given 
for  sanctification,  i.  e.,  for  carrying  into  effect  that  regen- 
eration which  is  conferred  in  Baptism.  By  Baptism  we 
are  taken  out  of  our  natural  state  of  sin  and  death,  into 
which  we  are  born  by  our  natural  birth,  and  are  translated, 
transplanted,  or  born  again  into  the  Church  of  Christ,  a 
state  of  grace,  and  endless  life  ;  and  by  Confirmation,  or  the 
imposition  of  the  hands  of  the  Bishop,  when  we  personally 
ratify  our  baptismal  vow  and  covenant,  we  are  endued  with 
the  Holy  Spirit  to  enable  us  to  overcome  sin,  and  to  perfect 
holiness  in  the  fear  of  God.  If  it  can  be  proved  that  the 
1  Acts  x.  44,  etc. 


224  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

Holy  Spirit  is  not  necessary  for  these  purposes,  but  that  his 
influence  is  only  necessary  when  miraculous  powers  are  to  be 
conferred,  I  will  confess  that  Confirmation  is  unnecessary  at 
this  time  ;  for  it  is  not  pretended  that  the  miraculous  powers 
of  the  Holy  Spirit  are  now  conferred  by  the  laying  on  of 
hands. 

You  must  have  observed,  that  though  the  Samaritans 
were  converted  and  baptized  by  St.  Philip  the  deacon,  yet 
the  Apostles  sent  two  of  their  own  order  to  lay  hands  on 
them.  And  St.  Paul,  when  the  twelve  disciples  at  Ephesus 
had  been  baptized  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  laid  His 
hands  on  them.  For  these  reasons,  the  Christian  Church 
has  always  appropriated  this  rite  to  the  successors  of  the 
Apostles,  the  supreme  order  of  the  Christian  priesthood. 

The  time  when  Confirmation  is  to  be  used  is  not  re- 
stricted to  any  particular  age.  When  the  person  is  of  com- 
petent reason  and  understanding  to  comprehend  the  nature 
of  the  baptismal  covenant,  and  is  duly  instructed  in  it,'  and 
sensible  of  his  duty  to  fulfill  it,  and  disposed  to  ratify  and 
confirm  it  before  God  and  his  Church,  with  full  purpose  of 
continuing  God's  faithful  servant  to  his  life's  end,  he  is  prop- 
erly qualified  for  the  rite.  And  of  these  qualifications  his 
minister  is  to  be  the  judge,  and  is  to  certify  the  Bishop 
thereof.  A  godfather  or  godmother  are  to  attend  with 
them,  to  witness  their  Confirmation,  and  to  put  them  in 
mind,  if  they  perceive  them  to  be  afterward  negligent  of 
their  duty,  or  departing  from  the  solemn  vows  and  promises 
they  then  made. 

The  benefits  resulting  from  this  institution  have  in  some 
measure  been  anticipated  ;  permit  me,  however,  just  to  enu- 
merate them.  It  enters  us  into  a  new  engagement  to  be 
the  Lord's  and  to  lead  a  holy  and  Christian  life ;  it  is  a  last- 
ing admonition  not  to  dishonor  or  desert  our  profession ;  it 
preserves  the  unity  of  the  Church,  by  making  men  sensible 
of  their  obligations  to  maintain  communion  with  those  ec- 
clesiastical superiors  who  are  the  successors  of  the  holy 
Apostles;  and  it  is  a  testimony  of  God's  mercy  and  favor 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  225 

to  them,  if  they  receive  it  worthily ;  because  his  minister 
declares  authoritatively,  that  God  accepts  their  proficiency, 
and,  advancing  them  to  the  higher  rank  of  the  faithful, 
gives  them  a  right  to  approach  his  Table,  and  feast  with 
their  brethren  on  the  sacrifice  of  the  Holy  Eucharist,  the 
memorials  of  Christ's  death ;  and  by  it  also  God  condescends 
to  communicate  supernatural  strength,  even  the  gift  of  his 
blessed  Spirit,  to  enable  them  to  encounter  and  vanquish 
their  spiritual  enemies,  and  fulfill  the  terms  of  the  gospel. 

These  things,  Reverend  Brethren,  you  will  explain  and 
inculcate  in  your  several  congregations,  that  all  may  be  in- 
formed of  the  nature  of  their  duty,  excited,  on  proper  mo- 
tives, to  comply  with  it,  and  instructed  how  to  come  wor- 
thily to  this  holy  rite,  that  they  may  receive  the  full  benefit 
of  it,  and  the  Church  be  edified  with  sound  and  living  mem- 
bers. 

You  will  also  put  godfathers  and  godmothers,  as  well  as 
the  natural  parents,  in  mind,  to  see  that  the  children  they 
have  answered  for  at  the  font  be  properly  instructed,  and  in 
due  time  brought  to  the  Bishop  to  be  confirmed  by  him, 
that  they  may  discharge  themselves  of  the  obligation  which 
their  Christian  charity  excited  them  to  undertake. 

And  the  Grod  of  all  grace,  who  hath  catted  us  unto  his  eter- 
nal glory  by  Jesus  Christ  —  make  you  perfect,  stablish, 
strengthen,  settle  you l  —  bless  and  prosper  your  ministry  in 
his  Church,  and  reward  your  faithful  labors  with  the  bless- 
ings of  his  own  heavenly  kingdom.  To  him,  the  holy  triune 
God,  be  glory  and  dominion  for  ever  and  ever.  Amen. 

1  1  Pet.  v.  10,  11. 
15 


226  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

COURTESIES  TO  THE  SOUTHERN  CLERGY,  AND  PROPOSALS  TO  CHANGE 
THE  LITURGY;  BISHOP  SEABURY'S  LETTER  TO  DR.  SMITH,  AND  REA- 
SONS FOR  NOT  ATTENDING  CONVENTION  IN  PHILADELPHIA;  CONVO- 
CATION IN  NEW  HAVEN,  AND  RELUCTANCE  TO  ALTER  THE  LITURGY; 
ORDINATION  OF  SEVEN  CANDIDATES,  AND  LETTER  TO  THE  SCOT- 
TISH BISHOPS;  BISHOP  SEABURY  AND  HIS  CLERGY  DENOUNCED  AS 

NON-JURORS  AND  JACOBITES,  AND  MR.  LEAMING'S  DEFENSE. 
A.    D.    1785. 

THE  clergy  of  Connecticut,  when  the  time  for  hold- 
ing the  convention  at  Middletown  had  been  fixed 
upon,  invited  their  Southern  brethren  to  meet  them 
for  the  purpose  of  considering  measures  tending  to 
the  union  and  organization  of  the  Church  in  the 
thirteen  States.  "  We  have  no  views,"  said  Mr.  Lea- 
rning, who  was  authorized  to  give  the  invitation,  "  of 
usurping  any  authority  over  our  brothers  and  neigh- 
bors, but  wish  them  to  unite  with  us,  in  the  same 
friendly  manner  that  we  are  ready  and  willing  to 
do  with  them.  I  must  earnestly  entreat  you  to 
come  upon  this  occasion,  for  the  sake  of  the  peace 
of  the  Church,  for  your  own  satisfaction,  in  what 
friendly  manner  the  clergy  here  would  treat  you,  not 
to  mention  what  happiness  the  sight  of  you  would 
give  to  your  sincere  friend  and  brother." 

This  was  addressed  to  Dr.  White,  and  included  the 
clergy  of  Pennsylvania.  The  only  response  to  it  was 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  227 

an  invitation  to  the  bishop  and  clergy  of  Connecticut 
to  attend  the  general  convention  which  was  to  meet 
at  Philadelphia  the  27th  of  the  ensuing  September. 
Of  course  no  such  invitation  could  be  accepted  by 
men  who  had  completed  their  own  organization  and 
who  believed  that  a  bishop  should  have  precedence 
by  virtue  of  his  office  in  all  ecclesiastical  assemblies. 
This  was  not  permitted  by  the  fifth  of  the  funda- 
mental articles  set  forth  in  New  York,  and  which 
were  to  come  up  again  for  consideration  and  adop- 
tion. Speaking  of  the  fifth  article,  Mr.  Parker,  in 
a  letter  to  Dr.  White,  September  14th,  said  :  "  Had  it 
stood  as  I  proposed,  that  a  bishop  (if  one  in  any 
State)  should  be  president  of  the  convention,  I  make 
no  doubt  there  would  have  been  one  present.  You 
will  be  at  no  loss  to  conclude  that  I  mean  Dr.  Sea- 
bury,  who,  you  must  ere  this  have  heard,  is  arrived 
and  entered  upon  the  exercise  of  his  offices  in  Con- 
necticut. Being  present  in  convocation  at  Middle- 
town  the  4th  of  August  last,  I  much  urged  his  attend- 
ing the  convention  at  Philadelphia  this  month,  but 
that  article  discouraged  him  so  much  that  no  argu- 
ments I  could  use  were  sufficient  to  prevail  with 
him." 

The  alterations  in  the  Liturgy  and  offices  of  the 
Church  agreed  to  by  the  bishop  and  clergy  at  Mid- 
dletown  were  laid  by  Mr.  Parker  before  a  convention 
of  clerical  and  lay  deputies  from  churches  in  Massa- 
chusetts, Rhode  Island,  and  New  Hampshire,  and  in 
the  main  adopted  by  that  body,  with  directions  that 
a  copy  of  its  proceedings  be  forwarded  to  Dr.  White 
or  the  president  of  the  general  convention  soon  to 
meet  in  Philadelphia.  Bishop  Seabury,  now  the  rec- 


228  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

ognized  head  of  the  Church  .in  Connecticut,  lost  no 
time,  after  the  meeting  in  Middletown,  to  write  to 
Dr.  Smith,  not  so  much  to  show  the  validity  of  his 
consecration  and  his  willingness  to  ordain  candidates 
who  might  be  sent  to  him,  as  to  criticise  the  precise 
fundamental  rules  established  in  New  York,  and  give 
warning  against  the  final  approval  of  changes  that 
would  lead  to  divisions,  and  prevent  the  Church  in 
America  from  becoming  "  united  in  government,  doc- 
trine, and  discipline."  He  wrote  also  a  briefer  letter 
to  Dr.  White,  and  both  were  inclosed  to  Dr.  Chand- 
ler, who  by  this  time  had  returned  to  his  family  in 
New  Jersey,  and  was  looking  with  intense  interest  to 
the  results  of  a  convention  which  his  health  would 
not  permit  him  to  attend. 

In  transmitting  the  letters  to  Dr.  White,  he  said : 
"That  to  Dr.  Smith  was  sent  open  for  my  inspec- 
tion ;  and  instead  of  sealing  it,  I  have  taken  the  lib- 
erty to  send  it  open  to  you,  wishing  that  you  also 
may  have  a  sight  of  it.  You  will,  therefore,  after 
reading  it,  be  so  good  as  to  seal  and  send  it  for- 
ward." At  the  same  time,  Dr.  Chandler  gave  free 
utterance  to  his  hopes  and  apprehensions,  and  advo- 
cated adherence  to  the  established  maxims  of  ecclesi- 
astical polity,  and  the  general  practice  of  the  Church 
in  all  ages.  He  enforced  the  views  of  the  clergy  of 
Connecticut,  and  thought  they  had  completed  their 
constitution  upon  right  principles.  "I  wish,"  said  he, 
"  that  in  the  other  States  the  example  may  be  fol- 
lowed, for  I  do  not  believe  that  the  Christian  world 
affords  one  more  conformable  to  the  primitive  pat- 
tern, all  things  considered,  than  the  Church  in  Con- 
necticut." 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  229 

The  letter  of  Bishop  Seabury  to  Dr.  Smith  is  an 
important  one,  frankly  and  carefully  written,  and 
before  sending  it  off,  he  transcribed  it  in  his  letter- 
book,  where  it  appears  with  all  the  precision  of  the 
original.  It  has  been  several  times  printed,  but  it 
is  so  necessary  to  a  full  understanding  of  his  views 
in  regard  to  the  interests,  rights,  and  honor  of  the 
Church  that  it  cannot  be  omitted  in  this  connection. 
It  was  dated 

NEW  LONDON,  August  15,  1785. 

REVEREND  AND  DEAR  SIR,  —  It  has  not  been  in  my 
power,  till  this  day,  to  pay  that  attention  to  your  letter  of 
July  19th,  which  the  importance  of  its  several  subjects  de- 
manded. 

The  grand  difficulty  that  defeated  my  application  for  con- 
secration in  England  appeared  to  me  to  be  the  want  of  an 
application  from  the  State  of  Connecticut.  Other  objections 
were  made,  viz :  That  there  was  no  precise  diocese  marked 
out  by  the  civil  authority,  nor  a  stated  revenue  appointed 
for  the  Bishop's  support :  But  those  were  removed.  The 
other  remained  —  for  the  civil  authority  in  Connecticut  is 
Presbyterian,  and  therefore  could  not  be  supposed  would  pe- 
tition for  a  Bishop.  And  had  this  been  removed,  I  am  not 
sure  another  would  not  have  started  up :  For  this  happened 
to  me  several  times.  I  waited,  and  procured  a  copy  of  an 
Act  of  the  Legislature  of  Connecticut,  which  puts  all  de- 
nominations of  Christians  on  a  footing  of  equality  (except 
the  Roman  Catholics,  and  to  them  it  gives  a  free  toleration), 
certified  by  the  Secretary  of  the  State:  For  to  Connecti- 
cut all  my  negotiations  were  confined.  The  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury  wished  it  had  been  fuller,  but  thought  it  af- 
forded ground  on  which  to  proceed.  Yet  he  afterward  said 
it  would  not  do;  and  that  the  minister,  without  a  formal 
requisition  from  the  State,  would  not  suffer  the  Bill,  en- 
abling the  Bishop  of  London  to  ordain  foreign  Candidates 
without  their  taking  the  Oaths,  to  pass  the  Commons,  if 


230  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

it  contained  a  clause  for  Consecrating  American  Bishops. 
And  as  his  Grace  did  not  choose  to  proceed  without  parlia- 
mentary authority  —  though  if  I  understood  him  right,  a 
majority  of  the  Judges  and  Crown  Lawyers  were  of  opinion 
he  might  safely  do  it — I  turned  my  attention  to  the  remains 
of  the  old  Scots  Episcopal  Church,  whose  Consecrations  I 
knew  were  derived  from  England,  and  their  authority  in  an 
ecclesiastical  sense  fully  equal  to  the  English  Bishops  —  no 
objection  was  ever  made  to  me  on  account  of  the  legacies 
left  for  American  Bishops.  Some  people  had  surmises  of 
this  kind,  but  I  know  not  whence  they  arose. 

I  can  see  no  good  ground  of  apprehension  concerning  the 
titles  of  estates  or  emoluments  belonging  to  the  Church  in 
your  State.  Your  Church  is  still  the  Church  of  England 
subsisting  under  a  different  civil  government.  We  have  in 
America  the  Church  of  Holland,  of  Scotland,  of  Sweden, 
of  Moravia,  and  why 'not  of  England?  Our  being  of  the 
Church  of  England  no  more  implies  dependence  on,  or  sub- 
jection to  England  than  being  of  the  Church  of  Holland  im- 
plies subjection  to  Holland. 

The  plea  of  the  Methodists  is  something  like  impudence. 
Mr.  Wesley  is  only  a  Presbyter,  and  all  his  Ordinations 
Presbyterian,  and  in  direct  opposition  to  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land :  And  they  can  have  no  pretense  for  calling  themselves 
Churchmen  till  they  return  to  the  unity  of  the  Church, 
which  they  have  unreasonably,  unnecessarily,  and  wickedly 
broken,  by  their  separation  and  schism. 

Your  two  cautions  respecting  recommendations  and  titles 
are  certainly  just.  Till  you  are  so  happy  as  to  have  a 
Bishop  of  your  own,  it  will  be  a  pleasure  to  me  to  do  every- 
thing I  can,  for  the  supply  of  your  Churches :  And  I  am 
confident  the  Clergy  of  Maryland,  and  the  other  States,  will 
be  very  particular  with  regard  to  the  qualifications  and 
titles  of  persons  to  be  admitted  into  their  own  Order. 
Should  they  think  proper  to  send  any  Candidates  hither, 
I  could  wish  that  it  might  be  at  the  stated  times  of  Ordina- 
tion ;  because  the  Clergy  here,  living  so  scattered,  it  is  not 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  231 

easy  on  every  emergency  to  get  three  of  them  together ;  and 
never  without  some  expense  which  they  cannot  well  afford. 
I  cannot  omit  to  mention  again  the  particular  satisfaction 
Mr.  Ferguson  gave,  not  only  to  me,  but  to  all  our  Clergy. 
I  hope  he  will  prove  a  worthy  and  useful  Clergyman.  I 
flatter  myself  he  got  home  without  any  disagreeable  accident. 

I  thank  you  for  your  communications  respecting  Washing- 
ton College,  and  the  various  Conventions  you  have  had  in 
your  State  and  neighborhood.  The  Clergy  and  Laity  have 
particular  merit  in  making  so  great  exertions  to  get  our 
Church  into  a  settled  and  respectful  state.  But  on  objects 
of  such  magnitude  and  variety  it  is  to  be  expected  that  sen- 
timents will  differ.  All  men  do  not  always  see  the  same  ob- 
ject in  the  same  light :  And  persons  at  a  distance  are  not 
always  masters  of  the  precise  reasons  and  circumstances 
which  have  occasioned  particular  modes  of  acting.  Of  some 
things  therefore  in  your  proceedings  I  cannot  be  a  compe- 
tent judge  without  minute  information;  and  I  am  very 
sorry  that  my  present  circumstances,  and  duty  here,  will  not 
permit  me  to  make  so  long  a  journey  at  this  time ;  because 
by  personal  interview  and  conversation  only  can  such  infor- 
mation be  had. 

But,  my  dear  Sir,  there  are  some  things  which,  if  I  do 
not  much  misapprehend,  are  really  wrong.  In  giving  my 
opinion  of  them,  I  must  claim  the  same  privilege  of  judging 
for  myself  wrhich  others  claim;  and  also  that  right  of  fair 
and  candid  interpretation  of  my  sentiments  which  is  due  to 
all  men. 

1.  I  think  you  have  done  wrong  in  establishing  so  many, 
and  so  precise,  fundamental  rules.  You  seem  thereby  to 
have  precluded  yourselves  from  the  benefit  of  after  consid- 
eration. And  by  having  the  power  of  altering  fundamental 
rules  diffused  through  so  large  a  body,  it  appears  to  me  next 
to  impossible  to  have  them  altered,  even  in  some  reasonable 
cases;  because  cases  really  reasonable  may  not  always  ap- 
pear so  to  two  thirds  of  a  large  assembly.  It  should  also  be 
remembered  that  while  human  nature  is  as  it  is,  something 


232  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

of  party,  passion,  or  partiality  will  ever  be  apt,  in  some  de- 
gree, to  influence  the  views  and  debates  of  a  numerous  and 
mixed  assembly. 

2.  I  think  you  have  too  much  circumscribed  the  power  of 
your  Bishop.  That  the  duty  and  Office  of  a  Bishop  differs 
in  nothing  from  that  of  other  Priests,  except  in  the  power  of 
Ordination  and  Confirmation  (Pamph.  p.  16),  and  the  right 
of  Precedency,  etc.,  is  a  position  that  carries  Jerome's  opin- 
ion to  the  highest  pitch  —  Quid  facit  Episcopus,  quod  Pres- 
byter non  faciat,  excepta  ordinatione  ?  But  it  does  not  ap- 
pear that  Jerome  had  the  support  of  the  Church,  in  this 
opinion,  but  rather  the  contrary.  Government  as  essentially 
pertains  to  Bishops  as  ordination  ;  nay,  ordination  is  but  the 
particular  exercise  of  government.  Whatever  share  of  gov- 
ernment Presbyters  have  in  the  Church,  they  have  from  the 
Bishop,  and  must  exercise  it  in  conjunction  with,  or  in  sub- 
ordination to  him.  And  though  a  Congregation  may  have 
a  right  —  and  I  am  willing  to  allow  it  —  to  choose  their 
minister,  as  they  are  to  support  him  and  live  under  his  min- 
istry, yet  the  Bishop's  concurrence  or  license  is  necessary, 
because  they  are  part  of  his  charge  ;  he  has  the  care  of  their 
souls,  and  is  accountable  for  them  ;  and  therefore  the  minis- 
ter's authority  to  take  charge  of  that  congregation  must 
come  through  the  Bishop. 

The  choice  of  the  Bishop  is  in  the  Presbyters,  but  the 
neighboring  Bishops,  who  are  to  consecrate  him,  must  have 
the  right  of  judging  whether  he  be  a  proper  person  or  not. 
The  Presbyters  are  the  Bishop's  council,  without  whom  he 
ought  to  do  nothing  but  matters  of  course.  The  Presbyters 
have  always  a  check  upon  their  Bishop,  because  they  can, 
neither  Bishop  nor  Presbyter,  do  anything  beyond  the  com- 
mon course  of  duty  without  each  other.  I  mean  with  regard 
ttrar-partic«lar  diocese;  for  it  does  not  appear  that  Presby- 
ters had  any  seat  in  general  Councils,  but  by  particular  in- 
dulgence. 

The  people  being  the  patrons  of  the  Churches  in  this  coun- 
try, and  having  the  means  of  the  Bishops'  and  ministers'  sup- 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  233 

port  in  their  hands,  have  a  sufficient  restraint  upon  them,  i 
In  cases  that  require  it,  they  can  apply  to  their  Bishop,  who, 
with  the  assistance  of  his  Presbyters,  will  proceed,  as  the 
case  may  require,  to  censure,  suspension,  or  deposition  of 
the  offending  Clergyman.  If  a  Bishop  behaves  amiss  the 
neighboring  Bishops  are  his  judges.  Men  that  are  not  to 
be  trusted  with  these  powers  are  not  fit  to  be  Bishops  or 
Presbyters  at  all. 

This,  I  take  it,  is  the  constitution  of  the  Christian  Church 
in  its  pure  and  simple  state.  And  it  is  a  constitution  which, 
if  adhered  to,  will  carry  itself  into  full  effect.  This  consti- 
tution we  have  adopted  in  Connecticut ;  and  we  do  hope  and 
trust  that  we  shall,  by  God's  grace,  exhibit  to  the  world,  in 
our  government,  discipline,  and  order,  a  pure  and  perfect 
model  of  primitive  simplicity. 

Presbyters  cannot  be  too  careful  in  choosing  their  Bishop ; 
nor  the  People  in  choosing  their  minister.  Improper  men 
may,  however,  sometimes  succeed :  And  so  they  will,  make 
as  exact  rules,  and  circumscribe  their  power,  as  you  can. 
And  an  improper  man  in  the  Church  is  an  improper  man, 
however  he  came  there,  and  however  his  power  be  limited. 
The  more  you  circumscribe  him,  the  greater  temptation  he 
is  under  to  form  a  party  to  support  him ;  and  when  his 
party  is  formed,  all  the  power  of  your  convention  will  not  be 
able  to  displace  him.  In  short,  if  you  get  a  bad  man,  your 
laws  and  regulations  will  not  be  effectual  —  if  a  good  man, 
the  general  laws  of  the  Church  are  sufficient. 

Where  civil  States  have  made  provision  for  ministers,  it 
seems  reasonable  that  they  should  define  the  qualifications, 
and  regulate  the  conduct  of  those  who  are  to  enjoy  the 
emolument.  But  voluntary  associations  for  the  exercise  of 
such  powers  as  your  Convention  is  to  have  are  always  apt 
—  such  is  the  infirmity  of  human  nature  —  to  fall  into  par- 
ties ;  and  when  party  enters,  animosity  and  discord  soon  fol- 
low. From  what  has  been  said  you  will  suppose  I  shall 
object 

3.  To  the  admission  of  Lay  members  into  Synods,  etc.     I 


234  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

must  confess  I  do,  especially  in  the  degree  your  fundamental 
rules  allow.  I  have  as  great  a  regard  for  the  Laity  as  any 
man  can  have.  It  is  for  their  sake  that  ministers  are  ap- 
pointed in  the  Church.  I  have  no  Idea  of  aggrandizing  the 
Clergy  at  the  expense  of  the  laity :  Nor  indeed  of  aggran- 
dizing them  at  all.  Decent  means  of  living  is  all  they  have 
a  right  to  expect.  But  I  cannot  conceive  that  the  Laity  can 
with  any  propriety  be  admitted  to  sit  in  judgment  on  Bish- 
ops and  Presbyters,  especially  when  deposition  may  be  the 
event ;  because  they  cannot  take  away  a  character  which 
they  cannot  confer.  It  is  incongruous  to  every  idea  of  Epis- 
copal government.  That  authority  which  confers  power, 
can,  for  proper  reasons,  take  it  away  :  But  where  there  is  no 
authority  to  confer  power,  there  can  be  none  to  disannul  it. 
Wherever,  therefore,  the  power  of  Ordination  is  lodged,  the 
power  of  deprivation  is  lodged  also. 

Should  it  be  thought  necessary  that  the  laity  should  have 
a  aba.™  ifl  foft  «*-finif*t  H*  i-n^ir  Rigfrflp  —-if  it  can  be  put  on  a 
proper  footing  so  as  fo  frvnirl  party  ajif)  ftnnfiision  • — I  see  n( 
buTthat  it  might  be  admitted.  But  I  do  not  apprehend  that 

»_-.     |  __rTT"^^^'''*     '     ' 

this  was  the  practice  of  the  primitive  Church,  In  short,  the 
TJghtsof  the  Christian  Church  arise  not  from  nature  or  com- 
pact, bui  lropL±b«  inBtjthfMMi  nf  ffirfat. ;  and  we  ought  ncft 
to  alter  them,  but  to  receive  and  maintain  them  as  the  holy 
apostles  left  them.  The  government.,  sacraments,  faith,  and 
doctrines  of  the  Church  are  fixed  and  settled.  We  have  a 
right  to  examine  what  they  are,  but  we  must  take  them  as 
they  are.  If  we  new  model  the  government,  why  not  the 
sacraments,  creeds,  and  doctrines  of  the  Church ;  But  then 
it  would  not  be  Christ's  Church,  but  our  Church ;  and  would 
remain  so,  call  it  by  what  name  we  please. 

I  do  therefore  beseech  the  Clergy  and  Laity,  who  shall  meet 
at  Philadelphia,  to  reconsider  the  matter  before  a  final  step 
be  taken :  And  to  endeavor  to  bring  their  Church  govern- 
ment  aa  near  to  jfcft  f ™Tnl^f^ 'pjfarn  ^  m^  fce.  ^^rmy-wttl 
Endit  tjie  simplest,  and  most  easy  to  carry  into  effect  ;~an3 
if  it  be  adhered  to  will  be  in  no  danger  of  sinking  or  failing. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  235 

I  do  not  think  it  necessary  that  the  Church  in  every 
State  should  be  just  as  the  Church  in  Connecticut  is,  though 
I  think  that  the  best  model.  Particular  circumstances,  I 
know,  will  call  for  particular  considerations.  But  in  so  es- 
sential a  matter  as  Church  government  is,  no  alterations 
should  be  made  that  affect  its  foundation.  If  a  man  be 
called  a  Bishop  who  has  not  the  Episcopal  powers  of  govern- 
ment, he  is  called  by  a  wrong  name,  even  though  he  should 
have  the  power  of  Ordination  and  Confirmation. 

Let  me  therefore  again  entreat  that  such  material  altera- 
tions, and  forgive  me  if  I  say,  unjustifiable  ones,  may  not  be 
made  in  the  government  of  the  Church.  I  have  written 
freely  as  becomes  an  honest  man,  and  in  a  case  which  I 
think  calls  for  freedom  of  sentiment  and  expression.  I  wish 
not  to  give  offense,  and  I  hope  none  will  be  taken.  What- 
ever I  can  do  consistently  to  assist  in  procuring  Bishops  in 
America,  I  shall  do  cheerfully,  but  beyond  that  I  cannot 
go ;  and  I  am  sure  neither  you,  nor  any  of  the  friends  of  the 
Church,  would  wish  I  should. 

If  any  expression  in  this  letter  should  seem  too  warm,  I 
will  be  ready  to  correct  the  mode,  but  the  sentiments  I  must 
retain  till  I  find  them  wrong,  and  then  I  will  freely  give 
them  up.  In  this  matter  I  am  not  interested.  My  ground 
is  taken,  and  I  wish  not  to  extend  my  authority  beyond  its 
present  limits.  But  I  do  most  earnestly  wish  to  have  our 
Church  in  all  the  States  so  ^settleJthat  it  may  be  one 
C'hurcTT^TrrriLed  in  government,  doctrine,  and  discipline  — 
that  there  may  be  no  divisions  among  us  —  no  opposition  of 
interests  —  no  clashing  of  opinions.  And  permit  me  to  hope 
that  you  will  at  your  approaching  Convention  so  far  recede 
in  the  points  I  have  mentioned,  as  to  make  this  practica- 
ble. Your  Convention  will  be  large  and  very  much  to  be 
respected.  Its  determinations  will  influence  many  of  the 
American  States,  and  posterity  will  be  materially  affected 
by  them.  These  considerations  are  so  many  arguments  for 
calm  and  cool  deliberation.  Human  passions  and  prejudices, 
and,  if  possible,  infirmities,  should  be  laid  aside.  A  wrong 


236  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

step  will  be  attended  with  dreadful  consequences.  Patience 
and  prudence  must  be  exercised :  And  should  there  be  some 
circumstances  that  press  hard  for  a  remedy,  hasty  decisions 
will  not  mend  them.  In  doubtful  cases  they  will  probably 
have  a  bad  effect.  May  the  Spirit  of  God  be  with  you  at 
Philadelphia,  and  as  I  persuade  myself,  the  sole  good  of  his 
Church  is  the  sole  aim  of  you  all,  I  hope  for  the  best  effects 
from  your  meeting. 

I  send  you  the  alterations  which  it  has  been  here  thought 
proper  to  make  in  the  Liturgy,  to  accommodate  it  to  the 
civil  constitution  of  this  State.  You  will  observe  that  there 
is  no  collect  for  the  Congress.  We  have  no  backwardness 
in  that  respect,  but  thought  it  our  duty  to  know  whether 
the  civil  authority  in  this  State  has  any  directions  to  give  in 
that  matter ;  and  that  cannot  be  known  till  their  next  meet- 
ing in  October. 

Some  other  alterations  were  proposed,  of  which  Mr.  Fer- 
guson took  a  copy;  and  I  would  send  you  a  copy  had  I 
time  to  transcribe  it.  The  matter  will  be  resumed  at  New 
Haven  the  14th  of  September.  Should  we  come  to  any  de- 
termination, the  Brethren  to  the  southward  shall  be  in- 
formed of  it. 

With  my  best  regards  to  the  Convention  and  to  you,  I  re- 
main your  affectionate,  humble  servant, 

SAMUEL,  Bp.  Epl.  Ch.  Connect. 

I  have  taken  the  liberty  to  inclose  a  copy  of  my  letters  of 
Consecration,  which  you  will  please  to  communicate  to  the 
Convention.  You  will  also  perceive  it  to  be  my  wish  that 
this  letter  should  be  communicated  to  them;  to  which,  I 
presume,  there  can  be  no  objection. 

His  letter  addressed  to  Dr.  White  was  written  a 
few  days  later,  and  gave  as  reasons  for  not  attending 
the  approaching  convention  that  neither  his  circum- 
stances nor  his  duty  would  permit  it.  He  referred  to 
his  sentiments  in  the  communication  to  Dr.  Smith, 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  237 

and  renewed  the  hope  that  the  matters  which  he  had 
pointed  out  would  be  reconsidered,  and  such  meas- 
ures pursued  as  might  prevent  the  Church  from 
"  either  falling  into  parties  and  dissolving,  or  sinking 
into  Presbyterianism." 

Bishop  Seabury  met  his  clergy  in  convocation  at 
New  Haven,  according  to  adjournment,  on  Wednes- 
day, the  14th  of  September,  while  Yale  College  was 
holding  its  annual  commencement.  Dr.  Stiles  was 
then  the  president  of  the  institution,  and  the  bishop 
entering  the  meeting-house  during  the  exercises, 
some  one  suggested  that  he  be  invited,  out  of  respect 
to  his  office,  to  take  a  seat  upon  the  stage  among 
other  distinguished  persons ;  to  which  the  president 
replied  :  "  We  are  all  bishops  here,  but  if  there  be 
room  for  another,  he  can  occupy  it." 

Not  much  was  done  at  this  convocation  in  the  way 
of  proposing  or  adopting  alterations  of  the  Liturgy. 
The  feeling  of  the  Connecticut  churchmen  on  the 
subject  may  be  read  in  an  extract  from  a  letter,  writ- 
ten by  Mr.  Hubbard  while  the  clergy  were  together, 
and  addressed  to  Mr.  Parker,  who  had  forwarded  a 
copy  of  the  variations  in  Massachusetts  from  what 
was  agreed  upon  at  Middletown  :  "  As  to  the  alter- 
ation proposed  by  your  convention  in  the  good  old 
Book  of  Common  Prayer,  I  can  at  present  only  say, 
that  our  convocation  are  slow  in  taking  up  a  matter 
of  so  much  consequence."  And  the  bishop  himself, 
nearly  three  months  later,  wrote  to  the  same  gentle- 
man, and  spoke  still  more  decidedly  against  hasty  ac- 
tion in  these  words  :  "  Between  the  time  of  our  part- 
ing at  Middletown  and  the  clerical  meeting  in  New 
Haven,  it  was  found  that  the  Church  people  in  Con- 


238  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

necticut  were  much  alarmed  at  the  thoughts  of  any 
considerable  alterations  being  made  in  the  Prayer- 
book  ;  and  upon  the  whole,  it  was  judged  best  that  no 
alterations  should  be  attempted  at  present,  but  to  wait 
till  a  little  time  shall  have  cooled  down  the  tempers 
and  conciliated  the  affections  of  people  to  each  other." 
At  that  period,  the  case  of  candidates  for  Holy  Or- 
ders came  directly  before  the  bishop  and  clergy,  and 
it  was  a  part  of  the  business  of  convocation  to  exam- 
ine and  accept  or  reject  their  testimonials.  Ordina- 
tion by  a  bishop  was  a  novel  thing  in  New  Haven, 
and  the  old  Trinity  Church  must  have  been  filled 
with  people  when,  on  the  16th  of  September,  three 
candidates,  two  from  New  Jersey  and  one  from  Mary- 
land, were  admitted  to  the  order  of  deacons,  and 
three  others  advanced  to  the  priesthood.  On  Sun- 
day, the  18th,  another  large  congregation  assembled 
in  the  same  place,  when  the  three  deacons,  with  Ash- 
bel  Baldwin,  were  admitted  to  the  order  of  priests. 
"  The  solemnity  of  the  offices,"  says  a  contemporary, 
"  and  the  devout  behavior  of  the  candidates,  im- 
pressed the  minds  of  those  who  were  present  with 
sensations  of  reverence  and  delight  more  easily  to  be 
imagined  than  described."  Necessity  required  that 
these  ordinations  should  follow  each  other  in  quick 
succession.  The  men  from  New  Jersey  and  Mary- 
land were  desirous  of  returning  to  enter  upon  work 
in  their  respective  States,  and  could  not  afford  to  be 
detained  longer  than  to  be  thoroughly  examined  and 
pronounced  qualified  for  the  office  whereunto  they 
had  been  called.  Bishop  Seabury  sometimes  took 
the  candidates  under  his  personal  supervision,  and  di- 
rected their  studies  for  months  before  proceeding  to 
ordain  them. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  239 

At  the  primary  meeting  in  Middletown,  the  press- 
ure of  business  was  so  great  that  no  time  was  taken 
to  answer  the  affectionate  letter  of  the  Scottish  bish- 
ops, addressed  to  the  clergy  of  Connecticut,  and  di- 
recting their  attention  to  the  "  Concordate "  as  an 
instrument  "  dictated  by  a  spirit  of  Christian  meek- 
ness, and  proceeding  from  a  pure  regard  to  regularity 
and  good  order."  This  matter,  therefore,  was  entered 
upon  at  the  convocation  in  New  Haven,  and  after 
suitable  deliberation,  the  following  grateful  acknowl- 
edgment was  approved  and  transmitted :  — 

NEW  HAVEN,  IN  CONNECTICUT,  September  16,  1785. 
RIGHT  REVEREND  FATHERS,  —  The  pastoral  letter  which 
your  Christian  attention  excited  you  to  address  us  from 
Aberdeen,  November  15,  1784,  was  duly  delivered  to  us  by 
the  Right  Reverend  Bishop  Seabury,  and  excited  in  us  the 
warmest  sentiments  of  gratitude  and  esteem.  We  should 
much  earlier  have  made  our  acknowledgments  had  not  our 
dispersed  situation  made  the  difficulty  of  our  meeting  to- 
gether so  very  great,  and  the  multiplicity  of  business  abso- 
lutely necessary  to  be  immediately  dispatched,  so  entirely 
engrossed  our  time  at  our  first  meeting  at  Middletown  as  to 
render  it  then  impracticable.  We  never  had  the  least  doubt 
of  the  validity  or  regularity  of  the  succession  of  the  Scottish 
Bishops,  and  as  we  never  desired  any  other  Bishops  in  this 
country,  than  upon  the  principles  of  the  primitive  Apostol- 
ical Church,  we  should,  from  the  very  first,  have  been  as 
well  pleased  with  a  Bishop  from  Scotland  as  from  England. 
But  our  connection  with  the  English  Church,  and  the  kind 
support  that  most  of  our  clergy  received  from  the  Society 
for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel,  naturally  led  us  to  renew 
our  application  to  that  Church,  when  we  found  ourselves 
separated  from  the  British  Government  by  the  late  peace. 
We  are  utterly  at  a  loss  to  account  for  the  backwardness 
of  the  British  Church  and  Government  to  send  Bishops  to 


240  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

this  country,  which  has  long  and  earnestly  been  requested. 
And  we  do  think  that  their  refusal  to  consecrate  Dr.  Sea- 
bury,  under  the  circumstances  that  we  applied  for  it,  was 
utterly  inconsistent  with  sound  policy  and  Christian  princi- 
ples. 

Greatly,  then,  are  we  indebted  to  you,  venerable  fathers, 
for  your  kind  and  Christian  interposition  ;  and  we  do  heart- 
ily thank  God  that  He  did  of  his  mercy  put  it  into  your 
hearts  to  consider  and  relieve  our  necessity. 

We  also  gratefully  revere  and  acknowledge  the  readiness 
with  which  you  gratified  our  ardent  wishes  to  have  a  Bishop 
to  complete  our  religious  establishment.  We  receive  it  as 
the  gift  of  God  himself  through  your  hands.  And  though 
much  is  to  be  done  to  collect  and  regulate  a  scattered,  and, 
till  now,  inorganized  Church,  yet  we  hope,  through  patience, 
diligence,  and  propriety  of  conduct,  by  God's  blessing,  in 
due  time  to  accomplish  it,  and  to  make  the  Church  of  Con- 
necticut a  fair  and  fruitful  branch  of  the  Church  Universal. 

Our  utmost  exertions  shall  be  joined  with  those  of  our 
Bishop  to  preserve  the  unity  of  faith,  doctrine,  discipline, 
and  uniformity  of  worship,  with  the  Church  from  which  we 
derived  our  Episcopacy,  and  with  which  it  will  be  our  praise 
and  happiness  to  keep  up  the  most  intimate  intercourse  and 
communion. 

Commending  ourselves  and  our  Church  to  your  prayers 
and  benediction,  we  are,  Right  Reverend  and  Venerable 
Fathers,  your  most  dutiful  sons  and  servants. 

Signed  in  behalf  of  the  whole  by      ABRAHAM  JARYIS, 
Secretary  to  the  Convocation  of  the  Episcopal  Clergy  in  Con- 
necticut. 

To  THE  RIGHT  REVEREND  ROBERT  KILGOUR,  BISHOP  AND  PRIMUS  ; 
ARTHUR  PETRIE,  AND  JOHN  SKINNER,  BISHOPS,  ABERDEEN. 

The  policy  in  England  appears  to  have  somewhat 
changed  after  the  heroic  movement  of  Dr.  Seabury 
to  obtain  consecration  from  the  Scottish  bishops,  and 
the  denunciation  of  him  and  the  Connecticut  clergy 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  241 

as  non-jurors  and  Jacobites  was  no  excuse  for  the 
course  which  the  Society  took  in  withholding  sym- 
pathy and  support.  "  The  reason  you  mention  for 
taking  away  our  salaries,"  wrote  Mr.  Learning,  one 
week  after  the  convention,  of  which  he  was  president, 
had  received  and  acknowledged  Dr.  Seabury,  "is  a 
paradox  in  all  shapes  I  can  view  it.  Our  names  were 
never  put  to  any  papers,  but  to  those  directed  to  the 
bishops  in  South  Britain;  and  to  them  none  put 
their  names  but  only  myself,  and  Mr.  Jarvis  as  sec- 
retary of  the  convention  of  this  State.  And  the  other 
reason  (if  it  can  be  called  so),  offered  for  doing  of  it 
is  as  unaccountable.  Did  they  without  our  wish  or 
design  make  us  non-jurors  ?  And  then  take  away 
our  salaries  because  we  were  non-jurors  ?  Heaven 
defend  us  from  such  sort  of  reason  !  I  do  not  know 
how  it  is  ;  but  great  men  can  draw  conclusions  with- 
out any  premises.  There  is  something  so  wicked  for 
them  to  entice  the  clergy  of  this  State  to  leave  their 
flocks,  which  have  been  brought  up  by  us  to  believe 
that  the  Society  had  nothing  more  at  heart  than  to 
support  true  religion,  without  the  least  thought  of 
acting  by  a  party  spirit  in  the  affair.  However,  I  im- 
pute all  this  to  the  influence  of  some  crafty  dissenter 
over  the  Society,  in  order,  now  we  have  a  bishop, 
to  stop  the  rapid  growth  of  the  Church  here.  Per- 
haps you  will  not  believe  it ;  but  the  Church  here  is 
now  the  popular  religion  in  the  State.  Had  our  sala- 
ries been  continued  seven  years  longer  we  should 
have  been  able  then  to  have  done  without  them. 
And  now  I  am  persuaded  we  shall  be  able  to  carry  a 
sufficient  sway  to  support  the  Church.  A  bishop  is 
no  objection  here." 

16 


242  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

The  effort  to  remove  the  obstacles  in  England  to 
the  consecration  of  bishops  for  America  was  not  re- 
newed without  throwing  doubt  upon  the  validity  of 
the  Scottish  Episcopacy.  Granville  Sharpe,  with  all 
his  philanthropy,  had  not  ceased  his  opposition  to 
what  he  called  "  the  pretensions  of  Dr.  Seabury  and 
the  non-juring  bishops  of  Scotland,"  and  in  his  di- 
ary, under  date  of  September  10,  1785,  he  wrote  : 
"  Waited  on  the  Archbishop  at  Lambeth  and  commu- 
nicated to  him  Mr.  Manning's  letter  respecting  the 
convention  of  the  Episcopal  clergy  this  month  at 
Philadelphia;  also  Dr.  Franklin's  letter  on  the  subject 
of  Episcopacy  and  the  Liturgy.  He  assures  me  that 
the  Administration  would  be  inclined  to  give  leave  to 
the  bishops  to  consecrate  proper  persons." 

Mr.  Manning  was  a  Baptist  minister,  at  the  head 
of  the  college  in  Providence,  R.  I.,  and  it  was  a  sin- 
gular procedure  to  apply  to  him  in  a  matter  of  this 
kind.  As  one  said  at  the  time  who  was  deeply  inter- 
ested : *  "  Has  Mr.  Sharpe  no  correspondence  with 
any  clergyman  of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  this  coun- 
try, that  he  writes  on  a  subject  of  that  nature  to  a 
Baptist  minister  ?  He  seems  to  be  dubious  as  to  the 
validity  of  consecration  obtained  through  that  chan- 
nel [non-juring  bishops],  but  if  the  succession  has 
been  preserved,  I  cannot  perceive  why  it  should  not 
be  sufficient."  Advantage  was  taken  of  the  views  of 
Mr.  Sharpe  to  discredit  the  orders  of  Bishop  Seabury, 
and  set  him  aside,  and  some  things  were  written  and 
done,  as  will  be  seen  hereafter,  which  unhappily  sa- 
vored more  of  the  spirit  of  personal  and  political  ani- 
mosity than  of  Christian  candor  and  intelligence. 

1  Mr.  Thomas  Fitch  Oliver,  of  Rhode  Island,  to  Rev.  S.  Parker. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  243 

Dr.  Franklin  had  notions  of  his  own  about  a  Lit- 
urgy, and  with  the  assistance  of  an  English  noble- 
man prepared  an  abridgment  of  the  Book  of  Com- 
mon Prayer,  which  was  printed  in  London  in  1773 ; 
but,  as  he  himself  said,  was  "  never  much  noticed." 
Whatever  may  have  been  his  private  faith  and  doc- 
trine, his  reverence  for  religion  and  Christian  institu- 
tions was  constantly  shown,  and  he  was  desirous  of 
seeing  the  Church  in  this  country,  with  which  he 
was  nominally  connected,  complete  in  its  organization. 
In  a  letter  written  from  Paris,  July,  1784,  to  a  couple 
of  his  young  countrymen  who  were  waiting  in  vain 
for  Holy  Orders  in  London,  —  the  oaths  of  allegiance 
being  the  impediment,  —  he  said  with  his  proverbial 
wisdom :  "  An  hundred  years  hence,  when  people  are 
more  enlightened,  it  will  be  wondered  at  that  men 
in  America,  qualified  by  their  learning  and  piety  to 
pray  for  and  instruct  their  neighbors,  should  not  be 
permitted  to  do  it  till  they  had  made  a  voyage  of  six 
thousand  miles  out  and  home,  to  ask  leave  of  a  cross 
old  gentleman  at  Canterbury." 

The  century  has  nearly  gone  by  since  these  words 
were  written,  and  all  who  are  not  familiar  with  the 
political  and  religious  history  of  England  at  that  pe- 
riod will,  indeed,  wonder  that  a  Church  which  had 
kings  for  her  nursing  fathers  and  queens  for  her 
nursing  mothers  was  so  backward  to  extend  her  pol- 
ity and  give  completeness  to  a  branch  of  her  own 
planting. 


244  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

CONVENTION  IN  PHILADELPHIA,  AND  ADOPTION  OF  AN  ECCLESIASTI- 
CAL CONSTITUTION  ;  APPLICATION  FjOR  BISHOPS  IN  THE  ENGLISH 
LINE,  AND  "THE  PROPOSED  BOOK;"  LETTER  OF  MR.  PROVOOST, 
AND  HOSTILITY  TO  BISHOP  SEABURY;  FEARS  OF  FRIENDS,  AND  RE- 
PLY OF  THE  BISHOPS  ;  ANOTHER  CONVENTION  IN  PHILADELPHIA, 
AND  ITS  PROCEEDINGS. 

A.  D.  1785-1786. 

THE  convention  which  met  in  Philadelphia,  Sep- 
tember 27,  1785,  was  composed  of  sixteen  clergymen 
and  twenty-six  laymen,  who  represented  parishes  in 
seven  of  the  old  thirteen  States,  namely,  New  York, 
New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Delaware,  Maryland,  Vir- 
ginia, and  South  Carolina.  Ten  of  the  clerical  and 
fourteen  of  the  lay  order  were  from  the  two  States  of 
Maryland  and  Pennsylvania,  and  the  convention  was 
organized  with  the  Rev.  William  White,  D.  D.,  as 
president,  and  the  Rev.  David  Griffith,  of  Virginia, 
as  secretary.  The  record  of  the  proceedings  makes 
no  mention  of  the  action  of  the  New  England  clergy, 
and  contains  not  the  slightest  reference  to  the  pres- 
ence in  this  country  of  a  bishop  who  ten  days  before 
had  ordained  three  candidates  from  Maryland  and 
New  Jersey,  and  was  shortly  to  ordain  others  from 
the  same  quarter. 

While  the  journal  is  thus  silent  in  regard  to  Bishop 
Seabury,  the  letter  which  he  addressed  to  Dr.  Smith 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  245 

was  presented  to  the  convention,  as  he  had  requested, 
and  produced  some  feeling  and  animadversion.  "  A 
few  of  the  lay  gentlemen,"  says  Dr.  White,  "  spoke 
more '  warmly  than  the  occasion  seemed  to  justify, 
considering  that  the  letter  appeared  to  contain  the 
honest  sentiments  of  the  writer,  delivered  in  inof- 
fensive terms."  The  business  to  which  the  body  ad- 
dressed itself  fell  under  three  heads,  —  to  frame  and 
adopt  an  ecclesiastical  constitution;  to  revise  and 
alter  the  Liturgy ;  and  to  prepare  and  report  a  plan 
for  obtaining  the  consecration  of  bishops  in  the  Eng- 
lish line  of  succession,  together  with  an  address  to  the 
archbishops  and  bishops  of  the  Church  of  England 
for  that  purpose.  These  three  branches  were  in- 
trusted to  the  same  committee,  composed  of  one  cler- 
gyman and  one  layman  from  each  of  the  States  rep- 
resented in  the  convention,  and  after  continuing 
together  for  ten  days,  the  session  was  brought  to  a 
close  with  "  divine  service  in  Christ  Church,  when 
the  Liturgy,  as  altered,  was  read  by  the  Rev.  Dr. 
White,  and  a  suitable  sermon  was  preached  by  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Smith." 

The  ecclesiastical  constitution  and  the  draught  of 
an  address  to  the  English  bishops  appear  in  full  on 
the  journal.  They  show  the  spirit  which  animated 
the  body,  and  the  influence  of  the  laity  in  shaping 
the  measures  that  were  adopted.  As  for  the  Episco- 
pacy, it  was  well  understood  that  it  could  be  obtained 
from  Scotland  ;  but  "the  majority  of  the  convention," 
says  Dr.  White,  "  certainly  thought  it  a  matter  of 
choice,  and.  even  required  by  decency,  to  apply,  in 
the  first  instance,  to  the  Church  of  which  the  Ameri- 
can had  been  till  now  a  part.  No  doubt,  the  senti- 


246  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

ment  was  strengthened  by  the  general  disapproba- 
tion entertained  in  America  of  the  prejudices  which, 
in  the  year  1688,  in  Scotland,  had  deprived  the  Epis- 
copal Church  of  her  establishment,  and  had  kept  her 
ever  since  in  hostility  to  the  family  on  the  throne. 
As  to  Bishop  Seabury's  failure  in  England,"  he  con- 
tinues, "  the  causes  of  it,  as  stated  in  his  letter, 
seemed  to  point  out  a  way  of  obviating  the  difficulty 
in  the  present  case." l 

It  was  proper  to  make  every  effort  to  obtain  the 
succession  from  English  bishops.  The  alterations  in 
the  Liturgy,  which  were  attended  with  warm  contro- 
versy and  resulted  in  setting  forth  what  is  known  in 
the  early  history  of  the  American  Church  as  "  The 
Proposed  Book,"  none  of  the  members  of  the  conven- 
tion at  first  entertained  thoughts  of,  according  to  Dr. 
White,  "  any  further  than  to  accommodate  it  to  the 
Revolution."  "  On  this  business  of  the  review  of  the 
Book  of  Common  Prayer  and  the  articles,"  are  his 
words,  "  the  convention  seem  to  have  fallen  into  two 
capital  errors,  independently  on  the  merits  of  the  al- 
terations themselves.  The  first  error  was  the  order- 
ing of  the  printing  of  a  large  edition  of  the  book, 
which  did  not  well  consist  with  the  principles  of  mere 
proposal.  Perhaps  much  of  the  opposition  to  it  arose 
from  this  very  thing,  which  seemed  a  stretch  of 
power,  designed  to  effect  the  introduction  of  the  book 
to  actual  use,  in  order  to  prevent  a  discussion  of  its 
merits.  The  other  error  was  the  ordering  of  the  use 
of  it  in  Christ  Church,  Philadelphia,  on  the  occa- 
sion of  Dr.  Smith's  sermon  at  the  conclusion  of  the 
session  of  the  convention.  This  helped  to  confirm 

1  Memoirs  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  p.  101. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  247 

the  opinion  of  its  being  to  be  introduced  with  a  high 
hand,  and  subjected  the  clergy  of  Philadelphia  to  ex- 
traordinary difficulty ;  for  they  continued  the  use  of 
the  Liturgy,  agreeably  to  the  alterations,  on  assur- 
ances given  by  many  gentlemen  that  they  would 
begin  it  in  their  respective  churches  immediately 
on  their  return.  This  the  greater  number  of  them 
never  did,  and  there  are  known  instances,  in  each  of 
which  the  stipulation  was  shrunk  back  from,  because 
some  influential  member  of  a  congregation  was  dis- 
satisfied with  some  one  of  the  alterations.  This  is 
a  fact  which  always  shows  very  strongly  how  much 
weight  of  character  is  necessary  to  such  changes  as 
may  be  thought  questionable." 

Great  pains  were  taken  to  prepare  the  way  for  a 
successful  application  to  the  English  bishops.  It  was 
an  objection  raised  in  England  to  the  consecration  of 
Dr.  Seabury,  that  the  cooperation  of  the  laity  and 
sanction  of  the  civil  authority  had  not  been  secured, 
and  therefore  the  convention  made  the  removal  of 
this  impediment  a  matter  of  special  attention.  It 
was  resolved  "  in  order  to  assure  their  lordships  of 
the  legality  of  the  present  proposed  application,  that 
the  deputies  now  assembled  be  desired  to  make  a  re- 
spectful address  to  the  civil  rulers  of  the  States  in 
which  they  respectively  reside,  to  certify  that  the 
said  application  is  not  contrary  to  the  constitution 
and  laws  of  the  same." 

The  aid  of  Mr.  John  Adams,  the  American  minister 
at  the  British  court,  was  sought,  not  in  his  official 
character,  but  as  a  private  citizen  of  high  dignity, 
and  he  presented  the  address  of  the  convention  to 
the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  in  person,  and  accom- 


248  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

panied  it  with  such  explanations  and  documentary 
supports  as  were  calculated  to  promote  the  object  of 
his  countrymen. 

In  deference  to  the  popular  notions  of  republican 
simplicity  all  the  highest  titles  accorded  to  bishops  in 
the  British  realm  were  to  be  discarded,  and  such  only 
assumed  as  were  due  to  spiritual  employments.  The 
Rev.  Dr.  Murray,  formerly  a  presbyter  in  Pennsylva- 
nia, wrote  from  London  to  his  old  friend  and  corre- 
spondent, Dr.  White,  after  news  of  the  action  of  the 
convention  had  reached  that  city :  "  I  would  fain 
hope  the  day  is  not  far  distant  when  I  shall  have  the 
honor  of  addressing  you,  Right  Reverend ;  you  meet 
my  wishes  more  and  more." 

The  following  extract  from  a  letter  written  by  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Provoost  to  Dr.  White,  dated  New  York, 
November  7,  1785,  not  only  shows  that  no  time  was 
lost  in  forwarding  the  address  of  the  convention  to 
England,  but  discloses  the  spirit  of  the  author  and 
the  animosity  borne  by  him  towards  one  whose  mis- 
fortune it  was  to  be  on  the  other  side  of  the  question 
in  the  war  of  the  Revolution. 

The  address  was  sent  by  the  Packet  with  recommenda- 
tory letters  from  the  President  of  Congress,  and  John  Jay, 
Esq.,  who  have  interested  themselves  much  in  our  business. 
I  have  also  inclosed  a  copy  I  had  taken  of  the  address,  with 
some  other  papers  relating  to  the  Church  in  America,  in  a 
letter  to  the  Bishop  of  Carlisle. 

I  expect  no  obstruction  to  our  application  but  what  may 
arise  from  the  intrigues  of  the  non-juring  Bishop  of  Connec- 
ticut, who  a  few  days  since  paid  a  visit  to  this  State  (not- 
withstanding he  incurred  the  guilt  of  misprision  of  Treason, 
and  was  liable  to  confinement  for  life  for  doing  so),  and  took 
shelter  at  Mr.  James  Rivington's,  where  he  was  seen  only 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  249 

by  a  few  of  his  most  intimate  friends :  whilst  he  was  there, 
a  piece  appeared  in  a  newspaper  under  Rivington's  direction, 
pretending  to  give  an  account  of  the  late  Convention,  but 
replete  with  falsehood  and  prevarication,  and  evidently  in- 
tended to  excite  a  popular  prejudice  against  our  transactions, 
both  in  England  and  America. 

On  Long  Island,  Dr.  Cebra  appeared  more  openly,  — 
preached  at  Hempstead  Church,  and  ordained  the  person 
from  Virginia  I  formerly  mentioned,  being  assisted  by  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Moore,  of  Hempstead,  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Bloomer, 
of  Newtown,  Long  Island. 

I  relate  these  occurrences,  that  when  you  write  next  to 
England,  our  friends  there  may  be  guarded  against  any  mis- 
representations that  may  come  to  them  from  that  quarter. 

Dr.  White  had  honestly  differed  from  Dr.  Seabury 
as  to  the  policy  of  the  colonies  in  the  struggle  for  in- 
dependence ;  but  he  had  no  thought  of  allowing  the 
issues  of  the  past  to  affect  him  in  the  organization 
and  settlement  of  the  Church,  and  he  soon  had  rea- 
son to  believe  that  the  suspicious  and  unkind  judg- 
ments of  Mr.  Provoost  were  due  to  his  own  personal 
and  political  prejudices.  His  persistent  misspelling 
of  the  name  of  Bishop  Seabury  —  whether  accidental 
or  designed  —  was  inexcusable  and  beneath  the  dig- 
nity of  a  Christian  gentleman,  and  an  examination  of 
the  piece  in  the  newspaper  does  not  sustain  his  as- 
sertion tbat  it  wras  "  replete  with  falsehood  and  pre- 
varication." l 

1  The  entire  article,  as  it  appeared,  reads  thus:  "We  are  informed 
that  about  twenty  of  the  Episcopal  clergy,  joined  by  delegates  of  lay 
gentlemen  from  a  number  of  the  congregations  in  several  of  the  South- 
ern States,  lately  assembled  at  Christ  Church,  Philadelphia,  revised  the 
Liturgy  of  the  Church  of  England  (adapting  it  to  the  late  Revolution), 
expunged  some  of  the  Creeds,  reduced  the  thirty-nine  Articles  to  twenty 
in  number,  and  agreed  on  a  letter  addressed  to  the  Archbishops  and  the 
Spiritual  Court  in  England,  desiring  they  would  be  pleased  to  obviate 


250  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

The  intelligence  which  came  from  England  in  re- 
sponse to  the  address  of  the  convention  was  unex- 
pected and  somewhat  discouraging.  "I  tremble," 
wrote  Dr.  Murray,  "for  the  consequences  after  you 
have,  as  it  is  reported,  laid  violent  hands  on  the  ven- 
erable fabric  of  your  mother  Church,  which  has  with- 
stood the  attacks  of  ages,  without  any  very  material 
alterations  since  Elizabeth."  Other  warm  friends  of 
the  American  Church  in  London  were  alarmed  at  the 
haste  with  which  the  revision  had  been  made,  and 
more  than  one  refugee  clergyman  wrote  for  fuller 
explanation  of  the  doings  of  the  convention,  and  dis- 
approved of  certain  articles  in  the  general  ecclesias- 
tical constitution,  which  were  esteemed  to  be  funda- 
mentally wrong. 

Mr.  Duche  feared  for  the  success  of  the  application, 
and  foresaw  an  unpleasant  disunion,  if  nothing  was 
done  to  recognize  Dr.  Seabury,  and  bring  him  in  to 
assist  in  making  further  regulations  for  discipline, 
worship,  and  a  "  general  uniformity  in  the  Episcopal 
Church  throughout  the  States."  Dr.  Inglis  looked 
with  astonishment  upon  the  article  which  sunk  a 

any  difficulties  that  might  arise  on  application  to  them  for  consecrating 
such  respectable  clergy  as  should  be  appointed  and  sent  to  London  from 
their  body  to  act  as  Bishops  on  the  Continent  of  America,  where  there 
is  at  present  only  one  Prelate  dignified  with  Episcopal  powers,  viz.,  the 
Right  Reverend  Dr.  Samuel  Seabury,  Bishop  of  the  Apostolical  Church 
in  the  State  of  Connecticut.  Hitherto  Mr.  Pitt,  the  British  minister, 
has  vehemently  opposed  all  applications  preferred  for  consecration  to 
Sees  in  America;  this  discouragement  occasioned  Bishop  Seabury  to 
secure  his  consecration  from  three  of  the  Bishops  in  Scotland,  which 
proves  as  perfectly  valid  and  efficient  as  though  obtained  from  the  hands 
of  their  Right  Reverences  of  Canterbury,  York,  and  London,  and  is  in- 
contestably  proved  by  a  list  of  the  consecration  and  succession  of  Scots 
Bishops  since  the  Revolution  in  1688,  under  William  the  Third."  (The 
New  York  Packet,  October  31,  1785.) 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  251 

bishop  to  the  level  of  a  layman,  and  wrote  Dr.  White 
a  long  letter,  pleading  for  the  preservation  of  a  sound 
faith  and  primitive  order.  "  When  I  first  saw  the 
regulation,"  said  he,  "  made  on  this  head,  I  was  as- 
tonished how  any  people,  professing  themselves  mem- 
bers of  an  Episcopal  Church,  could  think  of  degrad- 
ing their  bishop  in  such  a  manner.  No  Episcopal 
power  whatever  is  reserved  for  him  but  that  of  ordi- 
nation and  perhaps  confirmation.  He  is  only  a  mem- 
ber, ex  officio,  of  the  Convention,  where  he  resides, 
but  is  not  to  take  the  chair  or  preside  unless  he  is 
asked :  whereas,  such  presidency  is  as  essential  to  his 
character  as  ordination.  St.  Paul's  bishop  was  to  re- 
ceive and  judge  of  accusations  brought  against  pres- 
byters, as  hath  been  the  case  of  bishops  ever  since. 
But  your  bishop  has  nothing  to  do  with  such  mat- 
ters, —  the  convention,  consisting  mostly  of  laymen, 
are  to  receive  and  judge  of  accusations  against  him. 
In  short,  his  barber  may  shave  him  in  the  morning, 
and  in  the  afternoon  vote  him  out  of  his  office." 

The  Bishop  of  Connecticut,  who  was  not  influenced 
so  much  by  a  desire  to  be  properly  recognized  on  ac- 
count of  his  office  as  by  solicitude  for  the  true  in- 
terests of  the  Church  in  this  country,  wrote  to  Dr. 
White,  as  follows,  from 

NEW  LONDON,  January  18,  1786. 

DEAR  SIB,  —  I  should  have  paid  the  earliest  attention 
to  your  letter  of  the  18th  of  October,  but  that  I  flattered 
myself  I  would  have  been  favored  with  a  copy  of  the  Jour- 
nal of  the  Convention  at  Philadelphia,  and  a  letter  from  Dr. 
Smith  on  the  subject ;  but  as  I  have  unhappily  been  disap-1 
pointed  in  both  expectations,  I  will  no  longer  delay  writing 
to  you,  lest  what  has  hitherto  been  only  apparent,  should 
become  a  real  neglect. 


252  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

On  the  business  of  your  Convention  I  can  at  present  say 
nothing,  because  I  know  nothing  but  from  report,  and  that 
I  hope  has  exaggerated  matters ;  for  I  should  be  much  af- 
flicted to  find  all  true  that  is  reported.  You  mention  my 
disapprobation  of  your  including  the  Laity  in  your  represent- 
ative body.  Your  extending  the  power  of  the  lay-delegate, 
so  far  as  your  fundamental  rules  have  done,  I  did  then,  and 
do  now,  most  certainly  disapprove  of,  particularly  in  the  ar- 
ticle relating  to  the  Bishop,  who,  if  I  rightly  understand,  is 
to  be  subject  to  a  jurisdiction  of  presbyters  and  laymen.  I 
hope  the  general  desire  to  harmonize  which  you  mention  will 
produce  good  effects.  I  assure  you  no  one  will  endeavor 
more  to  effect  the  cordial  union  of  the  Episcopal  Church 
through  the  Continent  than  I  shall,  provided  it  be  on  Epis- 
copal principles. 

I  am,  Rev.  Sir,  with  regard  and  esteem,  your  very  humble 
servant,  SAMUEL,  Bp.  Epl.  Ch.  Connect. 

The  formal  answer  to  the  address  of  the  conven- 
tion, returned  by  the  archbishops  and  bishops,  nine- 
teen in  all,  was  dated  February  24,  1786,  and  while 
it  expressed  a  Christian  affection  for  the  petitioners 
and  a  wish  to  promote  their  spiritual  welfare,  it 
opened  up  the  subject  in  a  light  which  showed  how 
cautiously  they  intended  to  proceed  in  granting  the 
prayer  of  the  address  and  conferring  the  Episcopal 
character. 

"  With  these  sentiments,"  said  they,  "  we  are  dis- 
posed to  make  every  allowance  which  candor  can 
suggest  for  the  difficulties  of  your  situation,  but  at 
the  same  time,  we  cannot  help  being  afraid  that,  in 
the  proceedings  of  your  convention,  some  alterations 
may  have  been  adopted  or  intended,  which  those  dif- 
ficulties do  not  seem  to  justify. 

"  These  alterations  are  not  mentioned  in  your  ad- 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  253 

dress,  and  as  our  knowledge  of  them  is  no  more  than 
what  has  reached  us  through  private  and  less  certain 
channels,  we  hope  you  will  think  it  just,  both  to  you 
and  to  ourselves,  if  we  wait  for  an  explanation.  For 
while  we  are  anxious  to  give  every  proof,  not  only  of 
our  brotherly  affection,  but  of  our  facility  in  forward- 
ing your  wishes,  we  cannot  but  be  extremely  cau- 
tious lest  we  should  be  the  instruments  of  establish- 
ing an  ecclesiastical  system  which  will  be  called  a 
branch  of  the  Church  of  England,  but  afterwards 
may  possibly  appear  to  have  departed  from  it  essen- 
tially, either  in  doctrine  or  discipline." 

The  letter  of  the  English  prelates  was  received  in 
New  York  on  the  12th  of  May,  and,  detaining  the 
original  till  it  had  been  presented  to  a  convention  of 
presbyters  and  laymen  soon  to  assemble  in  that  city, 
Mr.  Provoost  hurried  off  a  copy  to  Dr.  White  by  the 
hands  of  a  Presbyterian  minister  traveling  south- 
ward, and  said  in  the  brief  note  which  accompanied 
it,  "  Pains  have  been  taken  to  misrepresent  our  pro- 
ceedings, yet  I  flatter  myself  from  the  seeming  can- 
dor of  the  bishops  that  these  misrepresentations  will 
do  us  no  material  injury."  His  brother  in  Philadel- 
phia was  more  cautious  as  well  as  more  charitable, 
and  evidently  did  not  think  it  wise  at  this  stage  of 
the  correspondence  to  allow  so  much  publicity.  The 
following  letter  to  Dr.  White,  dated  May  20,  1786, 
just  one  week  after  Mr.  Provoost  had  sent  him  a  copy 
of  the  address,  shows  the  drift  of  things  in  New  York 
and  New  Jersey,  and  a  determination  to  set  Bishop 
Seabury  aside,  if  possible  :  — 

I  wrote  by  Dr.  Rodgers,  and  am  now  to  acknowledge  the 
receipt  of  yours  of  the  14th  and  16th  instant,  with  the  in- 


254  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

closed  from  our  worthy  friend,  Richard  Peters,  Esq.  The 
Bishops'  reply  to  our  address  had  been  communicated  to  our 
Convention,  and  copies  taken  by  some  of  the  clerical  breth- 
ren before  your  cautionary  letter  arrived,  but  with  no  inten- 
tion of  publishing  it.  The  Convention,  after  sitting  two 
days  without  doing  anything  very  material,  adjourned  to 
the  second  Tuesday  of  next  month  in  expectation  of  a  more 
numerous  meeting  and  to  give  the  different  congregations 
an  opportunity  of  perusing  the  new  Prayer  Book  before  the 
question  for  adopting  it  came  forward.  The  package  with 
the  fifty  books  (viz.,  45  in  black  and  5  red  bound)  was 
brought  safe  to  me  early  last  Wednesday  morning.  But  I 
can  get  no  account  of  the  hundred  which  were  first  sent. 

Your  best  friends  in  this  city  approve  of  your  conduct  in 
not  admitting  persons  ordained  by  Dr.  Cebra  to  your  pulpit. 
The  clergy  in  New  Jersey  act  with  the  same  precaution. 
Mr.  Spraggs  and  Mr.  Roe  were  not  to  be  received  as  mem- 
bers of  their  Convention. 

The  Archbishop,  by  not  choosing  to  answer  private  in- 
quiries, has  left  the  matter  in  Dubio,  and  you  may  still  act 
literally  even  in  that  respect  upon  the  principle  of  sub  Judice 
Us  est. 

But  I  really  think  our  line  of  conduct  is  plain  before  us. 
As  the  General  Convention  did  not  think  proper  to  acknowl- 
edge Dr.  Cebra  as  a  Bishop,  much  less  as  a  Bishop  of  our 
Church,  it  would  be  highly  improper  for  us  in  our  private 
capacities  to  give  any  sanction  to  his  ordinations.  It  would 
also  be  an  insult  upon  the  Church  and  to  the  truly  venera- 
ble prelates  to  whom  we  are  now  making  application  for  the 
succession.  For  my  own  part  I  carry  the  matter  still  fur- 
ther, and,  as  a  friend  to  the  liberties  of  mankind,  should 
be  extremely  sorry  that  the  conduct  of  my  brethren  here 
should  tend  to  the  resurrection  of  the  sect  of  Non- Jurors 
(nearly  buried  in  oblivion),  whose  slavish  and  absurd  tenets 
were  a  disgrace  to  humanity,  and  Grod  grant  that  they  may 
never  be  cherished  in  America,  which,  as  my  native  country, 
I  wish  may  always  be  saved  to  liberty,  both  civil  and  relig- 
ious. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  255 

Eight  only  of  the  clergy  and  three  of  the  laity, 
who  formed  part  of  the  convention  which  met  in 
Philadelphia  to  frame  a  constitution  and  revise  the 
Book  of  Common  Prayer,  were  members  of  the  con- 
vention which  assembled  in  the  same  city  June  20, 
1786,  to  hear  and  act  upon  the  letter  from  the  arch- 
bishops and  bishops  of  the  Church  of  England.  The 
seven  States  were  again  represented,  but  not  a  lay- 
man from  Maryland  appeared,  and  John  Jay  had 
taken  the  place  of  James  Duane  as  a  delegate  from 
New  York.  The  whole  number  of  members  was 
fourteen  clergymen  and  twelve  laymen,  and  the  Rev. 
David  Griffith  was  elected  president,  and  Francis 
Hopkinson,  one  of  the  signers  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence,  secretary. 

The  very  first  action,  after  the  organization,  was 
an  indirect  assault  upon  Bishop  Seabury,  contained 
in  a  motion  "  that  the  clergy  present  produce  their 
letters  of  orders,  or  declare  by  whom  they  were  or- 
dained." Though  the  motion  was  lost,  another,  of- 
fered by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Provoost,  who  had  secured 
authority  to  this  effect  from  the  convention  in  New 
York,  struck  at  the  validity  of  ordinations  by  the 
Bishop  of  Connecticut;  and  finally,  to  allay  the  op- 
position, which  was  attended  with  bitter  feeling,  Dr. 
White  presented  a  resolution  which  was  unanimously 
adopted  :  "  That  it  be  recommended  to  this  Church 
in  the  States  here  represented,  not  to  receive  to  the 
pastoral  charge,  within  their  respective  limits,  clergy- 
men professing  canonical  subjection  to  any  bishop  in 
any  State  or  country  other  than  those  bishops  who 
may  be  duly  settled  in  the  States  represented  in  this 
Convention." 


256  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

The  only  members  to  be  affected  by  this  resolution 
were  the  Kev.  William  Smith,  the  younger  .gentle- 
man of  that  name  in  the  convention,  who  had  been 
ordained  by  a  Scottish  bishop,  and  the  Rev.  Joseph 
Pilmore,  ordained  by  Bishop  Seabury,  and  a  repre- 
sentative from  Pennsylvania,  who  utterly  denied  that 
any  pledge  of  canonical  obedience  had  been  required 
of  him  other  than  the  simple  vows  in  the  ordinal 
which  every  presbyter  was  accustomed  to  take. 
This  ought  to  have  ended  the  matter ;  but  the  next 
morning  the  Kev.  Robert  Smith,  of  South  Carolina, 
introduced  a  more  stringent  resolution,  which  was 
also  adopted  with  unanimity:  "That  it  be  recom- 
mended to  the  convention  of  the  Church  represented 
in  this  general  convention,  not  to  admit  any  person 
as  a  minister  within  their  respective  limits,  who  shall 
receive  ordination  from  any  bishop  residing  in  Amer- 
ica, during  the  application  now  pending  to  the  Eng- 
lish bishops  for  Episcopal  consecration." 

The  convention  then  entered  upon  the  business  of 
reviewing  the  proceedings  of  the  previous  meeting 
and  of  considering  the  letter  of  the  English  prelates 
in  response  to  the  application  for  the  Episcopacy. 
The  ecclesiastical  constitution  was  amended  in  some 
of  its  most  important  articles,  a  bishop,  if  present,  al- 
lowed his  proper  place  in  the  convention,  and  "  The 
Proposed  Book  "  permitted  to  be  used,  "  till  further 
provision  is  made,  in  this  case,  by  the  first  general 
convention  which  shall  assemble  with  sufficient  power 
to  ratify  a  Book  of  Common  Prayer  for  the  Church 
in  these  States."  A  committee  of  correspondence 
was  appointed,  with  authority  to  convene  a  general 
convention  in  Wilmington,  Del.,  whenever  a  majority 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  257 

of  them  should  deem  it  necessary ;  and  an  answer  to 
the  letter  from  the  archbishops  and  bishops  of  Eng- 
land was  adopted,  and,  having  been  duly  engrossed, 
was  signed  by  all  the  members  of  the  convention  ex- 
cept two  clergymen  and  three  laymen.  It  is  due  to 
the  views  of  the  signers  to  cite  in  this  place  nearly 
the  whole  of  their  answer  :  — 

It  gives  us  pleasure  to  be  assured  that  the  success  of  our 
application  will  probably  meet  with  no  greater  obstacles 
than  what  have  arisen  from  doubts  respecting  the  extent  of 
the  alterations  we  have  made  and  proposed ;  and  we  are 
happy  to  learn  that  as  no  political  impediments  oppose  us 
here,  those  which  at  present  exist  in  England  may  be  re- 
moved. 

While  doubts  remain  of  our  continuing  to  hold  the  same 
essential  articles  of  faith  and  discipline  with  the  Church  of 
England,  we  acknowledge  the  propriety  of  suspending  a 
compliance  with  our  request. 

We  are  unanimous  and  explicit  in  assuring  your  Lord- 
ships that  we  neither  have  departed  nor  propose  to  depart 
from  the  doctrines  of  your  Church.  We  have  retained  the 
same  discipline  and  forms  of  worship  as  far  as  was  consist- 
ent with  our  civil  constitutions  ;  and  we  have  made  no  al- 
terations or  omissions  in  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  but 
such  as  that  consideration  prescribed,  and  such  as  were  cal- 
culated to  remove  objections,  which  it  appeared  to  us  more 
conducive  to  union  and  general  content  to  obviate,  than  to 
dispute.  It  is  well  known  that  many  great  and  pious  men 
of  the  Church  of  England  have  long  wished  for  a  revision  of 
the  Liturgy,  which  it  was  deemed  imprudent  to  hazard,  lest 
it  might  become  a  precedent  for  repeated  and  improper  al- 
terations. This  is  with  us  the  proper  season  for  such  a  re- 
vision. We  are  now  settling  and  ordering  the  affairs  of  our 
Church,  and  if  wisely  done,  we  shall  have  reason  to  promise 
ourselves  all  the  advantages  that  can  result  from  stability 
and  union. 

17 


258  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

We  are  anxious  to  complete  our  Episcopal  system  by 
means  of  the  Church  of  England.  We  esteem  and  prefer 
it,  and  with  gratitude  acknowledge  the  patronage  and  favors 
for  which,  while  connected,  we  have  constantly  been  in- 
debted to  that  Church.  These  considerations,  added  to  that 
of  agreement  in  faith  and  worship,  press  us  to  repeat  our 
former  request,  and  to  endeavor  to  remove  your  present  hes- 
itation, by  sending  you  our  proposed  Ecclesiastical  Consti- 
tution and  Book  of  Common  Prayer. 

These  documents,  we  trust,  will  afford  a  full  answer  to 
every  question  that  can  arise  on  the  subject.  We  consider 
your  Lordships'  letter  as  very  candid  and  kind ;  we  repose 
full  confidence  in  the  assurance  it  gives ;  and  that  confidence, 
together  with  the  liberality  and  Catholicism  of  your  vener- 
able body,  leads  us  to  flatter  ourselves  that  you  will  not  dis- 
claim a  branch  of  your  Church  merely  for  having  been,  in 
your  Lordships'  opinion,  if  that  should  be  the  case,  pruned 
rather  more  closely  than  its  separation  made  absolutely  nec- 
essary. 

We  have  only  to  add  that  as  our  Church  in  sundry  of 
these  States  has  already  proceeded  to  the  election  of  persons 
to  be  sent  for  consecration,  and  others  may  soon  proceed  to 
the  same,  we  pray  to  be  favored  with  as  speedy  an  answer 
to  this,  our  second  address,  as  in  your  great  goodness  you 
were  pleased  to  give  to  our  former  one. 

The  proceedings  of  this  convention  were  not  cal- 
culated to  promote  a  good  understanding  between 
the  clergy  of  New  England  and  those  of  New  York, 
Pennsylvania,  and  the  South.  They  rather  widened 
the  breach  that  was  begun,  and  put  Bishop  Seabury 
aside  in  a  manner  which  his  friends  regarded  as  the 
forerunner  of  a  schism  in  the  American  Church. 
The  Eev.  Mr.  Parker,  of  Boston,  was  outspoken  in 
his  reproof  of  the  course  pursued,  and  expressed  in 
a  letter  to  Dr.  White  his  sorrow  at  the  coolness  and 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  259 

indifference  with  which  some  of  the  gentlemen  in 
the  convention  spoke  of  the  Bishop  of  Connecticut. 
"  However  eligible  it  may  appear  to  them/'  said  he, 
"  to  obtain  the  succession  from  the  English  Church, 
I  think  there  can  be  no  real  objection  to  Dr.  Sea- 
bury's  consecration  or  the  validity  of  orders  received 
from  him  ;  and  I  am  firmly  of  the  opinion,  that  we 
should  never  have  obtained  the  succession  from  Eng- 
land, had  he  or  some  other  not  have  obtained  it  first 
from  Scotland." 

The  judicious  and  temperate  memorial  from  New 
Jersey,  drawn  by  Dr.  Chandler,  and  presented  to  this 
convention,  opened  the  eyes  of  many  to  the  danger 
of  disorganization  on  account  of  the  proposed  Litur- 
gical changes,  and  the  more  the  new  Prayer  Book 
was  examined  and  circulated  among  intelligent 
churchmen,  the  less  was  the  favor  shown  to  the  alter- 
ations and  omissions  that  had  been  set  forth.  We 
"  are  very  apprehensive,"  is  the  language  of  that  me- 
morial, "  that  until  alterations  can  be  made  consistent 
with  the  customs  of  the  primitive  Church,  and  with 
the  rules  of  the  Church  of  England,  from  which  it  is 
our  boast  to  have  descended,  a  ratification  of  them 
would  create  great  uneasiness  in  the  minds  of  many 
members  of  the  Church,  and  in  great  probability 
cause  dissensions  and  schisms." 

The  political  condition  of  the  country  was  now 
somewhat  alarming,  and  the  minds  of  good  men  were 
exercised  about  the  establishment  of  a  new  and  per- 
manent form  of  government.  Dr.  Bowden,  a  great 
champion  of  the  Church,  and  the  author  of  "  Works 
on  Episcopacy,"  returned,  December,  1784,  to  Nor- 
walk,  where  he  spent  some  time  in  retirement  at  the 


260  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

outbreak  of  the  Revolution,  and  assumed  the  charge 
of  the  parish  in  that  place.  Under  his  rectorship 
the  church  was  rebuilt  "  in  an  elegant  manner  "  with 
voluntary  contributions,  notwithstanding  about  thirty 
families  of  Episcopalians  had  removed  to  Nova  Scotia 
and  other  places,  and  those  who  remained  had  been 
reduced  in  their  circumstances  by  the  war,  and  the 
destruction  of  their  property  when  the  town  was 
burnt.  The  following  letter,  dated  Norwalk,  August 
2,  1786,  and  written  to  one  who  could  appreciate  the 
signs  of  discontent  in  New  York,  is  a  graphic  descrip- 
tion of  the  public  confusions  and  dangers,  at  the  same 
time  that  it  expresses  fears  for  the  unity  and  welfare 
of  the  Church.  The  tribute  to  the  energy  and  char- 
acter of  Bishop  Seabury  was  well  deserved,  and  fixes, 
very  nearly,  the  date  of  the  first  consecration  of  a 
church  in  Connecticut,  and  the  large  number  of  per- 
sons confirmed  at  the  first  visitation  of  a  bishop  to 
Norwalk. 

DEAR  SIR,  —  The  accounts  from  your  part  of  the  country 
are  not  as  favorable  as  from  S.  John's.  Your  government  is 
not  well  spoken  of.  Numbers  have  come  away  exasperated, 
complaining  of  injustice  and  breach  of  faith ;  and  it  is  said 
that  a  large  part  of  the  refugees  to  this  day  have  not  drawn 
their  lands.  Refugees,  I  know,  are  a  very  discontented  set 
of  mortals,  and  I  have  no  doubt  that  much  of  their  clamor 
is  groundless.  But  yet,  I  fear,  your  Governor  is  exceed- 
ingly faulty,  and  too  deficient  in  all  the  requisites  for  good 
government.  I  wish  that  you  were  his  mentor,  —  then,  I 
am  sure,  a  benevolent  intention  to  promote  the  happiness  of 
the  community  would  mark  the  whole  administration. 

It  is  probable  you  have  heard  of  my  being  in  Connecticut. 
In  a  political  view,  this  is  by  far  the  most  eligible  State 
to  live  in.  Distinctions  have  entirely  ceased,  all  oppressive 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  261 

laws  are  repealed,  and  Whig  and  Tory  stand  upon  equal 
ground.  Not  so  in  New  York.  That  State  is  indelibly 
marked  with  infamy.  The  highest  Whigs  in  the  city  exe- 
crate the  conduct  of  the  Legislature,  and  it  is  not  uncommon 
to  hear  those  who  stood  foremost  in  promoting  the  Revolu- 
tion, sigh  their  discontent,  under  all  the  splendor  and  ad- 
vantages of  independence.  I  once  thought  that  I  should  see 
no  more  trouble  in  my  day, — but  I  have  altered  my  mind. 
All  things  seem  to  tend  to  a  state  of  anarchy ;  and  unless  I 
take  my  flight  to  another  world  pretty  soon,  I  believe  I  shall 
see  the  political  system  here  in  much  such  a  condition  as  the 
natural  was  at  the  creation,  —  "  without  form  and  void ;  and 
darkness  was  upon  the  face  of  the  deep." 

The  Eastern  States  bid  fairest  for  a  continuance  under 
their  present  form  of  government.  The  manners  of  the  peo- 
ple are  simple,  and  their  mode  of  living  frugal.  But  from 
New  York  westward,  luxury  and  dissipation  have  made  a 
rapid  progress.  All  ranks  are  vieing  with  one  another  in 
extravagance.  We  have  put  on  the  fashionable  manners 
and  assumed  the  gay  complexion  of  an  old  established  na- 
tion, long  flowing  in  wealth,  and  arrived  at  the  last  period 
of  folly  and  vice,  whilst  in  our  political  infancy.  If  this 
state  of  things  does  not  produce  ruin,  there  will  be  one  ex- 
ception in  the  history  of  mankind  to  that  position :  "  the 
same  causes  produce  the  same  effects." 

Amidst  all  these  disorders,  nothing  affects  me  as  much  as 
the  state  of  the  Church.  It  is  much  to  be  feared,  that  there 
will  be  a  separation  of  the  Eastern  and  Western  Churches. 
The  former,  steadfast  in  Episcopal  principles,  would  send  no 
delegates  to  the  grand  Convention  at  Philadelphia  last  Sep- 
tember, because,  the  year  preceding,  the  Convention  held 
at  New  York  departed  wholly  from  the  principles  of  the 
Church  in  regard  to  government.  (The  pamphlet  herewith 
will  give  you  the  particulars.)  Yet  that  Convention  had 
the  modesty  to  apply  to  the  English  bishops  to  invest  per- 
sons sent  from  this  country  with  Episcopal  powers.  The 
answer  was  a  civil  put  off.  The  bishops  said  that  they  un- 


262  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

derstood  great  alterations  had  been  made  in  the  government 
and  constitution  of  the  Church,  but  as  the  Convention  had 
sent  no  authentic  copy  of  their  proceedings,  a  decisive  an- 
swer could  not  be  given.  An  authentic  copy  has  since  been 
sent,  and  great  hopes  are  entertained  of  success.  But  I  am 
fully  satisfied  that  the  English  bishops  will  never  give  their 
sanction  to  a  plan  of  government  which  leaves  out  the  Epis- 
copal character.  Bishop  Seabury  makes  a  very  respectable 
figure  at  the  head  of  this  Church.  His  abilities,  firmness, 
diligence,  and  circumspect  conduct  give  churchmen  great 
hopes,  dissenters  great  fears.  He  consecrated,  about  a  month 
since,  the  church  lately  built  in  this  town,  and  confirmed 
near  four  hundred  persons.  Nothing  is  wanting  to  make  this 
Episcopate  flourish,  but  a  little  pecuniary  assistance.  The 
loss  of  the  Society's  bounty  is  severely  felt. 
From  your  sincere  friend,  and  humble  servant, 

JOHN  BOWDEBT. 
ISAAC  WILKINS,  ESQ. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABUEY.  263 


CHAPTER  XV. 

BISHOP  SEABURY'S  COMMUNION  OFFICE,  AND  CONVOCATION  AT 
DERBY;  LITURGICAL  CHANGES,  AND  LETTER  TO  GOVERNOR  HUNT- 
INGTON;  SECOND  CHARGE,  AND  EPISCOPAL  RESIDENCE;  POVERTY 

OF    THE    CLERGY    AND    PEOPLE,    AND    SUPPORT    OF    THE    BISHOP. 

A.  D.  1786-1787. 

IN  1786,  Bishop  Seabury  set  forth  "the  Commun- 
ion Office,  or  order  for  the  administration  of  the  Holy 
Eucharist/'  and  recommended  it  to  the  Episcopal  con- 
gregations in  Connecticut.  It  followed  the  Scotch  of- 
fice and  was  in  accordance  with  the  compact  entered 
into  at  Aberdeen  after  his  consecration.  The  fifth 
article  of  the  "  Concordate  "  states  that  Bishop  Sea- 
bury  agreed  to  take  a  serious  view  of  the  communion 
office  recommended  by  the  Scottish  bishops,  "  and,  if 
found  agreeable  to  the  genuine  standards  of  antiquity, 
to  give  his  sanction  to  it,  and,  by  gentle  methods  of 
argument  and  persuasion,  to  endeavor,  as  they  have 
done,  to  introduce  it  by  degrees  into  practice  without 
the  compulsion  of  authority  on  the  one  side,  or  the 
prejudice  of  former  custom  on  the  other." 

The  clergy  met  in  convocation  at  Derby,  the  latter 
part  of  September,  1786,  and  the  office  was  put  forth 
at  that  time  and  gradually  came  into  use  in  the  dio- 
cese. Those  who  were  contemporaries  with  Bishop 
Seabury  formed  a  strong  attachment  for  it,  and 
traces  of  this  attachment  lingered  in  Connecticut  for 


264  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

half  a  century.1  It  has  been  seen  that  the  clergy  as 
well  as  the  laity  were  indisposed  to  alterations  in  the 
Prayer  Book,  and  the  recommendation  of  the  office 
had  all  the  more  weight  with  them  from  the  single 
fact  that  it  was  not  urged  with  "  the  compulsion  of 
authority."  The  private  ejaculations  and  prayers 
which  accompanied  it  appear  to  have  been  composed 
by  the  bishop,  and  the  office  was  convenient,  in  its 
original  form,  for  use  by  the  people  on  occasions  of 
celebrating  the  holy  communion.  Whether  more 
than  one  edition  of  it  was  printed  at  the  time  has  not 
been  discovered  ;  probably  a  second  edition  was  not 
called  for,  as  the  present  order  in  the  Book  of  Com- 
mon Prayer  was  settled  upon  three  years  later,  and 
accepted  by  the  whole  Church  in  the  United  States. 

At  this  convocation  in  Derby,  some  Liturgical 
changes  were  adopted  which  the  new  civil  relations 
of  the  country  rendered  necessary.  The  meeting  was 
not  a  hurried  one.  Time  was  taken  to  examine  care- 
fully the  matters  proposed,  and  while  no  minutes 
have  been  preserved,  there  are  contemporary  docu- 
ments to  prove  that  the  best  part  of  a  week  was 
given  to  the  discussion  of  the  subjects  which,  came  up 
for  consideration.  As  a  result  of  the  deliberations  it 
was  ordered  that  the  following  supplication  be  in- 
serted in  the  Litany  :  — 

1  When  I  began  my  ministry  as  a  deacon  in  the  autumn  of  1835,  in 
St.  Peter's  Church,  Cheshire,  the  Rev.  Reuben  Ives,  a  former  rector  of 
the  parish,  ordained  by  Bishop  Seabury  and  for  a  time  his  assistant  at 
New  London,  was  living  in  retirement  at  the  place,  and  I  requested  him 
to  officiate  in  the  communion  service.  He  invariably  read  what  is 
called  the  prayer  of  Humble  Access  immediately  after  consecrating  the 
elements,  and  just  before  communicating,  as  it  stands  at  present  in  the 
Scottish  office. 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  265 

"  That  it  may  please  Thee  to  bless  and  protect  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled ; 
and  to  direct  and  prosper  all  their  consultations  to 
the  advancement  of  the  public  welfare  and  the  pro- 
motion of  thy  true  religion  and  virtue  :  — 

"  We  beseech  Thee  to  hear  us,  good  Lord." 

If  the  Litany  should  not  be  read  the  direction  was 
to  use  as  a  substitute  for  the  supplication,  this  Col- 
lect :  — 

66  Almighty  God,  the  fountain  of  all  goodness,  we 
humbly  beseech  Thee  to  bless  the  United  States  of 
America  in  Congress  assembled,  together  with  the 
Governor  and  Kulers  of  this  State ;  endue  them  with 
thy  Holy  Spirit;  enrich  them  with  thy  heavenly 
grace ;  prosper  them  with  all  happiness ;  and  grant 
that  under  their  wise  and  just  government,  we  may 
lead  godly  and  quiet  lives  in  this  world,  and  by  thy 
mercy  obtain  everlasting  happiness  in  the  world  to 
come,  through  Jesus  Christ,  our  Lord.  Amen.9' 

Bishop  Seabury  was  mindful  of  what  belonged  to 
the  Church  in  its  relations  to  the  State,  and  took  an 
early  opportunity  to  acquaint  the  Governor  of  Con- 
necticut with  the  action  of  the  convocation  at  Derby. 
He  was  now  the  head  of  a  religious  body  which  had 
been  proscribed  during  the  war  of  the  Revolution  for 
sympathy  with  the  cause  of  the  crown;  and  he 
would  show  his  readiness  and  that  of  his  clergy  to 
submit  to  the  powers  that  be,  and  to  join  as  heartily 
in  the  support  of  the  new  form  of  government  as  be- 
fore they  had  been  opposed  to  the  independence  of 
the  colonies.  He  wrote  the  following  letter  to  his 


266  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

"  Excellency,  Samuel  Huntington,  Esquire,  Governor 
of  the  State  of  Connecticut,"  dated 

NEW  LONDON,  October  14,  1786. 

SIR,  —  The  Convocation  of  the  Episcopal  Clergy  of  this 
State  having  in  their  late  meeting  in  Derby  directed  the  in- 
closed forms  of  Prayer  for  the  United  States  of  America  in 
Congress  assembled,  to  be  inserted  in  the  Liturgy,  and  used 
in  the  celebration  of  Divine  Service,  I  have  taken  the  lib- 
erty to  make  this  communication  to  your  Excellency,  think- 
ing it  my  duty  to  lay  all  our  transactions  in  which  the  State 
is  in  any  wise  concerned,  before  the  Supreme  Magistrates. 
We  feel  it  to  be  our  duty,  and,  I  assure  your  Excellency,  it 
is  our  willing  disposition,  to  pray  for,  and  seek  to  promote, 
the  peace  and  happiness  of  the  Country  in  which  we  live, 
and  the  stability  and  efficacy  of  the  Civil  Government  under 
which  God's  providence  has  placed  us :  And  we  persuade 
ourselves,  that  in  the  discharge  of  this  duty,  we  have  not 
derogated  from  the  freedom,  sovereignty,  or  independence  of 
this  State.  Should  your  Excellency's  sentiments  be  differ- 
ent, I  shall  presume  to  hope  for  a  communication  of  them, 
that  due  regard  and  attention  may  be  paid  to  them. 

Begging  the  best  blessings  of  Heaven  for  your  Excellency, 
both  in  your  private  and  public  capacity,  I  remain,  with 
great  regard  and  esteem,  your  Excellency's  most  obedient 
and  very  humble  servant,  S.,  Bp.  Connect}- 

On  Monday  afternoon,  the  2d  of  October,  the 
bishop  arrived  in  New  Haven  from  attending  the 
convocation  in  Derby,  and  from  visiting  a  number  of 
the  Episcopal  parishes  in  the  northeastern  part  of  the 
State.  Tarrying  for  a  single  night,  he  set  out  the 
next  morning  for  New  London  by  the  way  of  North 
Haven,  where  the  rite  of  confirmation  was  adminis- 
tered the  same  day.2  No  list  of  the  number  of  can- 

1  MS.  Letter-Book. 

2  See  The  Connecticut  Journal  for  October  4,  1786. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  267 

didates  upon  whom  he  laid  his  hands  here  and  in 
other  places  during  this  visitation  has  been  discov- 
ered, and  the  sermons  he  preached  have  not  been 
noted.  He  admitted  four  persons  to  the  order  of 
deacons,  September  21st,  and  on  Sunday,  the  24th, 
he  ordained  another  to  the  same  office.  One  impor- 
tant document  was  published,  as  the  title-page  shows, 
"  at  the  earnest  desire  of  the  Convocation,"  and  it  is 
from  a  rare  and  dingy  copy  of  the  original  impres- 
sion a  that  we  reproduce  in  these  pages  "  Bishop  Sea- 
bury's  Second  Charge  to  the  Clergy  of  his  Diocese, 
delivered  at  Derby,  in  the  State  of  Connecticut,  on 
the  22d  of  September,  1786." 

REVEEEND  BEETHEEN,  —  It  having  pleased  Almighty 
God,  our  heavenly  Father,  that  we  should  again  come  to- 
gether, to  compare  the  progress  each  of  us  has  made  in  the 
great  work  committed  to  his  charge,  —  the  preaching  the 
Gospel  of  Christ,  and  reclaiming  sinners  from  the  errors  of 
their  ways ,  —  to  deliberate  on  the  most  prudent  and  effect- 
ual means  of  building  up  the  Church,  and  enlarging  the 
kingdom  of  our  Redeemer  ;  and  to  encourage  each  other  to 
proceed  with  steadiness  and  zeal  in  the  arduous  undertaking 
—  most  sincerely  do  I  bless  GOD  for  the  happy  meeting, 
earnestly  beseeching  him  to  enable  us  by  his  grace  to  pros- 
ecute our  business  with  prudence  and  meekness,  and  a  sin- 
cere love  for  the  souls  of  them  that  are  under  our  care  ;  and 
that  he  would  bless  and  prosper  our  endeavors,  and  render 
them  effectual  to  the  purpose  for  which  they  are  intended. 

In  the  Charge  delivered  the  last  year  at  Middletown,  par- 
ticular mention  was  made  of  the  necessity  of  Confirmation, 
and  of  the  propriety  of  your  explaining  to  your  people  the 
nature  of  the  holy  Rite,  and  the  authority  on  which  it 
stands,  that  so  they  might  come  to  it  with  due  preparation, 
and  a  mind  convinced  of  its  reasonableness  and  usefulness. 
1  New  Haven:  Printed  by  Thomas  and  Samuel  Green. 


268  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

I  have  every  reason  to  suppose  that  this  has  been  done  with 
the  greatest  care  and  fidelity.  The  numbers  of  serious  and 
well-informed  persons  who  have  presented  themselves  for 
Confirmation  in  the  various  Churches  where  it  has  been 
ministered  are  a  sufficient  and  pleasing  proof  that  the  sub- 
ject has  not  been  neglected.  This  is  a  matter  of  sincere  joy 
to  me;  and  must  be  so  to  you,  and  to  all  good  men;  and 
opens  a  fair  prospect  of  my  finding  all  those  Congregations 
ready  for  the  Holy  Solemnity,  which  I  shall  at  this  time  be 
able  to  visit. 

The  general  state  of  the  Church,  however,  is  such  as  must 
fill  every  serious  mind  with  anxious  concern  for  its  prosper- 
ity. Its  old  patrons,  who,  under  GOD,  were  its  great  sup- 
port, have  withdrawn  their  countenance,  and  left  it  to  stand 
by  its  own  strength.  The  time,  and  sudden  manner  of  do- 
ing this,  are  attended  with  such  circumstances  as  really 
double  the  inconveniences.  The  members  of  the  Church  had 
in  no  degree  recovered  from  the  loss  and  damage  sustained 
in  the  late  commotions.  Nor  had  time  enough  elapsed,  to 
give  them  an  opportunity  of  arranging  any  matters,  or  es- 
tablishing any  funds,  for  the  supplying  of  that  deficiency, 
which  the  withdrawing  of  the  salaries  from  England  would 
necessarily  make  in  the  support  of  their  ministers.  One 
year's  notification  previous  to  the  withdrawing  of  the  sala- 
ries would  in  a  great  measure  have  prevented  the  inconven- 
iences which  we  now  feel :  And  it  is  hard  to  conceive  that 
this  would  materially  have  injured  the  Society's  funds,  or 
have  disobliged  those  benevolent  persons  who  so  generously 
contribute  to  that  excellent  institution. 

But  duty  requires  that  everything  relating  to  that  venera- 
ble body,  in  whose  service  many  of  us  were  lately  employed, 
should  be  considered  in  the  most  favorable  light.  And,  in 
justice  to  them,  it  ought  to  be  noted,  That  their  Charter  en- 
ables them  to  send  Missionaries  only  into  the  British  Colo- 
nies, Plantations,  and  Factories,  beyond  sea.  When  there- 
fore the  American  States  ceased  to  belong  to  the  British 
empire,  they  ceased,  in  a  legal  sense,  to  be  the  objects  of 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  269 

their  Charter.  Thus  candor  obliges  us  to  think  and  say. 
But  gratitude  has  further  obligations  on  us.  We  ought  to 
bless  GOD  for  his  mercy  in  raising  up  that  Society  for  our 
assistance.  We  have  been  benefited  by  it :  And  we  ought 
to  be  grateful  to  him,  and  to  those  worthy  characters  who 
composed  and  supported  it.  The  memory  of  those  that  are 
dead  ought  to  be  revered  by  us  :  Nor  should  the  present  ap- 
parent unkindness  obliterate  the  sense  of  the  former  benefits 
we  have  received  from  the  present  members.  May  GOD  re- 
ward them  !  And  as  they  are  now  exerting  their  benevolence 
in  other  countries  —  may  HE  bless  and  prosper  their  en- 
deavors to  establish  true  religion,  piety,  and  virtue  in  them. 

On  our  part,  this,  as  well  as  every  other  misfortune,  is  to 
be  received  as  the  dispensation  of  GOD  —  as  the  chastise- 
ment of  our  heavenly  Father :  Whether  intended  to  correct 
something  amiss  in  us  and  the  congregations  to  which  we 
minister  ;  or  to  exercise  and  prove  our  faith  and  patience, 
must  be  left  to  every  person's  judgment  and  conscience  to 
determine  for  himself.  Probably  something  of  both  may  be 
in  the  case.  Our  duty  therefore  requires,  that  we  call  our- 
selves to  account,  and  see  wherein  we  have  offended;  that 
we  humble  ourselves  before  GOD  for  our  negligences  and 
omissions  —  for  our  want  of  diligence  and  zeal  in  our  Mas- 
ter's service  ;  that  we  beg  of  him  his  merciful  forgiveness  of 
all  that  is  past,  and  the  grace  of  his  Holy  Spirit,  to  amend 
our  lives,  and  make  us  more  careful  and  exact  in  our  duty 
for  the  time  to  come.  And  let  us  inculcate  the  same  senti- 
ments and  conduct  on  the  people  of  our  several  cures. 

Let  this  dispensation  also  teach  us  patience,  and  humility, 
and  resignation,  and  faith  ;  and  excite  us  to  obtain  that  pov- 
erty of  spirit  to  which  the  heavenly  kingdom  is  promised. 
We  shall  thereby  resemble  him  the  more,  who  humbled 
himself,  that  he  might  exalt  us ;  who  became  poor,  that  he 
might  make  us  rich  ;  who  patiently  resigned  himself  to  the 
will  of  his  Father,  that  he  might  pay  the  ransom  of  our 
souls,  and  redeem  us  from  destruction  :  Setting  us  an  exam- 
ple that  we  might  follow  his  steps. 


270  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

Our  dependence  must  now  be  on  our  own  efforts,  the  be- 
nevolence of  our  Congregations,  and  the  merciful  providence 
of  him  who  "  openeth  his  hand  and  filleth  all  things  liv- 
ing with  plenteousness."  He  has  cut  off  one  resource,  and 
he  can  open  others  :  And  he  will  open  others,  should  he  see 
it  best  for  us.  To  him  let  us  commit  ourselves  and  our 
Church,  in  humble  confidence  that  he  who  feeds  the  ravens, 
who  clothes  the  grass,  who  protects  the  sparrow,  who  num- 
bers the  hairs  of  our  heads,  who  knoweth  whereof  we  have 
need,  who  hath  promised  all  necessary  things  to  them  who 
seek  his  kingdom  and  the  righteousness  thereof,  will  extend 
his  providential  care  to  us  also.  And  while  we  thus  put  our 
trust  in  GOD,  let  us  not  be  negligent  in  using  all  honest  and 
decent  means  for  our  own  support,  that  shall  be  in  our 
power.  Little  indeed  can  a  Clergyman  do,  out  of  the  line 
of  his  profession,  to  increase  his  income  ;  and  out  of  the  line 
of  his  profession,  it  is  not  always  right  and  proper  that  he 
should  step.  His  principal  efforts  then  must  be  in  the  way 
of  economy  and  frugality :  By  moderation  in  his  enjoyments 
and  expenses,  to  make  his  income  go  as  far  as  possible  in  the 
support  of  himself  and  family,  and  so  that  something  also 
may  be  left  to  answer  the  necessary  demands  of  benevolence 
and  charity.  If  these  efforts  fail  us,  and  our  present  income 
be  really  too  little  to  support  us  as  becomes  the  Ministers  of 
GOD,  we  must,  with  all  meekness  and  patience,  explain  our 
circumstances  and  situations  to  the  Congregations  where  we 
officiate ;  and  endeavor  to  convince  them  of  their  duty  to 
exert  their  abilities  in  making  some  further  provision  for  our 
support ;  that  so  we  may  attend  on  our  duty  without  anx- 
ious solicitude  for  the  comforts  of  life,  and  they  may  enjoy 
the  public  worship  of  GOD,  and  the  sacred  offices  and  ordi- 
nances of  Religion,  which  he  has  appointed  in  his  Church, 
for  their  growth  in  grace  and  Christian  knowledge.  It  is  to 
be  hoped  and  presumed,  that  these  representations  will  have 
their  influence.  Should  they  not,  I  know  of  no  human  rem- 
edy, but  a  removal  to  some  place  where  there  is  a  chance  of 
doing  better.  But  be  the  issue  whatever  it  may,  let  us  re- 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  271 

• 

member  that  it  is  the  dispensation  of  our  heavenly  Father, 
who  knows,  and  who  will  do,  what  is  best  for  us.     And, 

'That  we  may  with  the  more  confidence  look  to  him  for  his 
gracious  protection,  we  must  take  especial  care  faithfully  to 
do  our  duty  to  him,  as  good  stewards  of  those  heavenly  mys- 
teries with  which  he  has  entrusted  us.  Now, 

One  great  instance  of  fidelity  in  our  duty,  and  which  we 
have  all  solemnly  engaged  at  our  ordinations,  attentively  to 
regard,  is  to  drive  away  all  erroneous  and  strange  doctrines, 
by  which  the  truth  of  the  Gospel  may  be  obscured  or  cor- 
rupted, and  the  salvation  of  the  people  endangered.  And 
certainly  there  never  was  greater  need  of  the  discharge  of 
this  duty,  or  of  contending  earnestly  for  the  faith,  as  it  was 
once  delivered  to  the  saints,  than  at  this  time. 

Deism,  with  its  necessary  consequence,  —  no  religion  at 
all,  or  rather  adverseness  to  all  religion,  —  if  I  am  rightly  in- 
formed, has  within  a  few  years  made  great  advances  in  the 
United  States.  Other  causes  may  have  occurred ;  but  I 
cannot  help  thinking,  that  the  wild,  ill-founded,  and  incon- 
sistent schemes  of  religion,  and  systems  of  divinity,  which 
have  obtained  in  the  world  —  I  fear  I  may  say,  particularly 
in  this  country  —  have  opened  the  way  for  the  progress  of 
infidelity.  People  of  sober  reason  and  common  sense  may 
hence  be  tempted  to  think,  that  Reason  and  Religion  can 
never  be  reconciled.  They  too  who  have  been  beguiled  into 
a  belief  of  such  ill-founded  systems,  or  enthusiastic  opinions, 
finding  that  they  cannot  be  supported,  when  properly  at- 
tacked, may  be  led  to  suppose  that  all  religious  principles 
are  equally  unfounded  with  their  own.  The  next  step  is  to 
become  proselytes  to  the  opinion  that  all  religions  are  equal, 
and  no  religion  as  good  as  any. 

Our  only  weapons  are  sober  reason  and  fair  argument  — 
drawn  from  the  nature  of  GOD  and  of  man  —  from  the  rela- 
tion we  stand  in  to  GpD  —  from  our  real  state  and  condi- 
tion in  this  world  —  and  from  that  immortal  state  which 
awaits  us  in  the  next.  That  our  reasons  and  arguments 
may  have  effect,  they  should  be  proposed  with  perspicuity, 


272  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

and  urged  with  meekness  and  good  temper.  All  ostenta- 
tion, and  vanity,  and  every  appearance  of  superiority,  should 
be  carefully  avoided.  We  must  therefore  understand  our  re- 
ligion, and  be  able  to  give  a  good  account  of  it,  or  we  shall 
not  be  able  to  defend  it,  or  to  convince  gainsayers.  And 
we  must  understand  ourselves  too,  —  be  acquainted  with 
our  own  tempers,  and  able  to  command  our  passions,  — -  or 
we  shall  probably  be  foiled,  through  want  of  knowledge,  or 
through  the  impetuosity  of  passion.  Religious  disputes,  no 
doubt,  ought  commonly  to  be  avoided :  But  sometimes  duty 
requires  us  to  enter  into  them  :  And  that  we  may  do  so 
with  advantage,  we  ought  to  be  acquainted  with  the  princi- 
ples and  doctrines  of  our  religion,  the  ground  on  which  they 
stand,  and  the  topics  from  which  reasons  and  arguments 
may  be  drawn,  to  illustrate  and  defend  them. 

Duty  obliges  me  to  take  notice  of  another  circumstance 
that  will  call  for  our  attention,  —  the  prevalence  of  Arian- 
ism  and  Socinianism.  The  former  of  these  heresies  early 
infested  the  Church,  and  nearly  destroyed  the  true  faith. 
The  latter  sprung  from  the  former,  and  is  the  produce  of 
more  modern  times  :  And  their  advocates  seem  now  to  be 
incorporating  their  systems,  and  joining  their  efforts,  to  dis- 
card the  divinity  of  Christ  from  the  Christian  system. 

It  is  something  extraordinary,  that  men  who  profess  to 
believe  the  Holy  Scriptures  should  discard  a  doctrine  so 
plainly  and  strongly  asserted  in  them,  and  on  which  the 
whole  structure  of  our  religion  is  apparently  built.  To  get 
rid  of  the  positive  declarations  of  Holy  Scripture  in  favor 
of  Christ's  divinity,  the  patrons  of  these  heresies  are  obliged 
to  recur  to  forced  and  unnatural  constructions  of  particular 
passages,  and  to  affix  new  meanings  to  words  and  phrases, 
of  which  the  early  Christians  had  no  knowledge.  Attach- 
ment to  philosophical  systems,  first  adopted,  and  then  made 
the  standard  of  truth,  seems  to  be  the  source  of  these,  as 
it  is  of  many  other  evils  to  Christianity.  Objections  have 
been  made  to  the  Mosaic  account  of  the  creation,  because  it 
was  thought  not  to  comport  perfectly  with  the  system  of 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  273 

Copernicus.  And,  if  I  rightly  remember,  Dr.  Priestly  in 
his  letters  to  the  Archdeacon  of  St.  Alban's  attempts  to  over- 
throw the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  of  Persons  in  the  God- 
head, because  he  supposes  it  inconsistent  with  mathematical 
principles  :  1  -f-  1  +  1  —  3  :  therefore  there  cannot  be 
THREE  persons,  and  ONE  GOD. 

It  would  be  well  if  men  would  reserve  positive  assertions, 
and  dogmatical  positions,  for  those  subjects  they  do  under- 
stand ;  and  would  learn  to  speak  with  more  modesty  and 
diffidence  of  matters  which  it  is  impossible  they  should 
fully  comprehend.  We  know  nothing  of  GOD  but  what  he 
has  been  pleased  to  reveal  to  us.  And  though  there  must  of 
necessity  be  many  things  mysterious  in  his  nature,  and 
works,  and  revelations,  when  contemplated  by  such  limited 
understandings  as  we  possess  ;  yet  as  his  revelations  are  in- 
tended for  our  information,  we  must  suppose  the  terms  in 
which  they  are  conveyed  are,  as  much  as  possible,  accommo- 
dated to  our  capacities,  and  to  be  understood  according  to 
the  analogy  they  have  to  our  own  mode  of  expression,  and 
not  in  a  sense  totally  different  from,  and  utterly  incongru- 
ous with  that  in  which  we  are  accustomed  to  use  them. 
When  Christ  says,  "I  and  my  Father  are  one"  — are  we  to 
suppose  that  he  intended  to  convey  an  idea  that  he  and  his 
Father  were  as  absolutely  distinct  in  essence  as  are  two 
mathematical  units?  When  St.  John  says,  "There  are 
three  that  bear  record  in  heaven,  the  Father,  the  Word, 
and  the  Holy  Ghost :  And  these  three  are  taie  "  (eV  eiVt) 
one  thing — one  substance  —  one  essence  —  are  we  to  sup- 
pose them  to  be  totally  distinct,  so  that  if  the  Father  be 
God,  and  the  Word  be  God,  and  the  Holy  Ghost  be  God, 
there  shall  be  three  Gods?  Three  distinct  witnesses  they 
are,  and  therefore  they  must  be  three  distinct  personalities  : 
But  they  are  one  essence,  and  therefore  one  GOD.1  We 
cannot  comprehend  this  mystery  —  must  we  then  refuse  to 

1  I  am  not  ignorant  that  the  authenticity  of  1  John  v.  7  is  disputed. 
Nor  am  I  ignorant  that  it  has  been  incontestibly  established  by  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Travis,  in  his  letters  to  Mr.  Gibbon. 
18 


274  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

believe  it  ?  Let  us  also  refuse  to  believe  our  eyes,  for  we 
can  as  little  comprehend  how  they  perceive  objects  at  ten  or 
twenty  miles  distance. 

When  Dr.  Priestly  can  by  searching  find  out  GOD  ;  when 
he  can  comprehend  the  Almighty  to  perfection,  — then  let 
him  pronounce  positively  oh  the  nature  of  GOD,  and  adjust 
it  as  school-boys  adjust  their  sums  in  addition.  He  may 
then  too  be  qualified  to  correct  the  errors  of  expression  in 
divine  revelation,  and  teach  the  Almighty  to  express  himself 
better.  But  let  us  bow  in  humble  reverence  before  the  maj- 
esty of  heaven  and  earth  :  And  as  we  know  nothing  of  his 
nature,  or  of  his  will,  but  by  revelation,  let  us  attend  to 
that  —  be  content  to  submit  our  ignorance  to  his  knowledge, 
and  to  think  of  him,  and  believe  in  him,  as  he  has  repre- 
sented himself  to  us. 

It  is  always  a  disagreeable  task  to  be  obliged  to  mention 
any  matter  with  censure,  or  even  disapprobation  ;  and  I  am 
very  happy  that  the  measure  of  which  I  am  now  to  take 
notice,  can  call  for  animadversion,  only  by  way  of  caution. 
A  number  of  the  Clergy  and  Laity  in  the  southern  States 
have  undertaken  to  revise  and  alter  the  Liturgy,  and  Offices, 
and  Government  of  the  Church ;  and  have  exhibited  a 
Prayer-book  to  the  public.  The  time  will  not  permit  me  to 
say  anything  of  the  merit  of  the  alterations  in  the  Liturgy : 
But,  I  am  persuaded,  by  an  unprejudiced  mind,  some  of 
them,  will  be  thought  for  the  worse,  most  of  them  not  for 
the  better.  But  the  authority  on  which  they  have  acted  is 
unknown  in  the  Episcopal  Church.  The  government  of  the 
Church  by  Bishops,  we  hold  to  have  been  established  by  the 
Apostles,  acting  under  the  commission  of  Christ,  and  the  di- 
rection of  the  Holy  Ghost ;  and  therefore  is  not  to  be  altered 
by  any  power  on  earth,  nor  indeed  by  an  angel  from  heaven. 
This  government  they  have  degraded,  by  lodging  the  chief 
authority  in  a  Convention  of  clerical  and  lay  Delegates  — 
making  their  Church  Episcopal  in  its  orders,  but  Presbyte- 
rian in  its  government. 

Liturgies  are  left  more  to  the  prudence  and  judgment  of 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  275 

the  governors  of  the  Church:  And  the  primitive  practice 
seems  to  have  been,  that  the  Bishop  did,  with  the  advice,  no 
doubt,  of  his  Presbyters,  provide  a  Liturgy  for  the  use  of 
his  diocese.  This  ought  to  have  been  the  case  here.  Bish- 
ops should  first  have  been  obtained  to  preside  over  those 
Churches.  And  to  those  Bishops,  with  the  Proctors  of  the 
Clergy,  should  have  been  committed  the  business  of  compil- 
ing a  Liturgy  for  the  use  of  the  Church,  through  the  States. 
This  would  have  insured  unity  in  doctrine,  worship,  and  dis- 
cipline through  the  whole,  which  upon  the  present  plan  will 
either  not  be  obtained,  or,  if  obtained,  will  not  be  durable. 

And  should  we  ever  be  so  happy,  through  the  merciful 
providence  of  GOD,  to  obtain  such  a  meeting,  great  regard 
ought  to  be  had  to  the  primitive  Liturgies  and  Forms,  in 
compiling  a  book  of  Common  Prayer.  The  Christians  who 
lived  in  the  next  age  after  the  Apostles  must  have  conversed 
with  apostolic  men,  i.  e.,  with  those  who  had  conversed  with 
the  Apostles,  and  were  acquainted  with  their  opinions  and 
practice,  in  the  conduct  of  the  public  worship,  and  adminis- 
tration of  the  sacraments,  and  discipline  of  the  Church. 
Nor  is  it  likely  that  they  would  easily  or  quickly  depart 
from  that  mode  which  they  knew  had  been  approved  by 
them ;  especially  at  a  time  when  perpetual  persecution  and 
distress  kept  men  close  to  GOD  and  their  duty :  And  the 
world  and  its  concerns  could  have  but  little  power  over 
those  who  daily  expected  to  yield  up  that  life  in  martyr- 
dom, which  they  passed  in  continual  devotion  to  GOD,  and 
in  the  service  and  edification  of  his  Church.  It  would 
therefore  be  a  good  rule,  in  altering  anything  in  our  stated 
Liturgy  that  might  be  thought  to  need  it,  to  go  back  to 
early  Christianity,  before  it  was  corrupted  by  Popery,  and 
see  what  was  then  the  practice  of  the  Church  —  what  its 
rites  and  ceremonies  —  and  to  conform  our  own  as  nearly  to 
it  as  the  state  of  the  Church  will  permit ;  always  remember- 
ing that  the  government,  and  doctrines,  and  sacraments  of 
the  Church  are  settled  by  divine  authority,  and  are  not  sub- 
jected to  our  amendment,  or  alteration. 


276  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

And  the  best  way  to  ascertain  the  Government,  doctrines, 
Liturgies,  or  forms  of  public  service  of  the  primitive  Church 
is  to  consult  and  attend  to  the  early  Christian  writers. 
They  were  the  best  judges  of  apostolic  practice,  because 
they  lived  nearest  to  the  apostolic  times ;  at  least,  they 
could  not  be  mistaken  with  regard  to  the  practice  of  their 
own  times  and  churches.  And  whenever  we  find  by  these 
writers,  that  the  Churches  of  Asia,  Africa,  and  Europe 
agreed  in  any  particular  relating  to  government,  doctrine, 
discipline,  or  public  worship,  we  may  conclude  it  to  have 
been  according  to  apostolic  usage  and  judgment.  For  these 
Churches  were  settled  by  different  Apostles  and  Evangelists ; 
and  consequently,  what  they  did,  and  held,  and  taught,  in 
common  with  each  other,  must  have  been  from  the  general 
doctrine,  practice,  judgment,  and  authority  of  the  Apostles. 
We  ought  therefore  to  be  very  careful  not  to  weaken  that 
government,  or  warp  those  doctrines,  or  contravene  the  prin- 
ciples of  the  public  liturgies  of  the  early  period  of  the  Chris- 
tian Church :  For  the  probable  chance  is,  if  we  do,  we  shall 
run  counter  to  apostolic  doctrine  and  practice. 

You  see,  that  it  is  not  my  aim  to  set  up  the  judgment  or 
opinions  of  particular  men  —  of  Origen,  Chrysostom,  or  Je- 
rome, for  instance  —  as  the  foundation  of  our  religious  prin- 
ciples, but  the  general  judgment  and  practice  of  the  primi- 
tive Church,  as  the  best  standard  of  apostolical  practice. 

It  is  upon  the  authority  and  testimony  of  the  primitive 
Church  that  we  settle  the  canon  of  the  New  Testament. 
Give  up  this  authority  and  testimony,  and  there  will  be  no 
good  proof  left,  that  the  several  books  of  the  New  Testament 
were  written  by  the  persons  whose  names  they  bear.  But 
when  it  is  known  from  the  primitive  writers,  that  these 
books  were  universally  received  by,  and  read  in,  all  the 
Churches,  as  the  writings  of  those  persons  to  whom  they  are 
ascribed,  their  authenticity  and  divine  authority  will  be  es- 
tablished beyond  all  reasonable  dispute. 

The  same  mode  of  reasoning  will  apply  to  the  interpreta- 
tion of  Scripture.  The  present  seems  to  be  the  age  of  re- 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  277 

finement,  and  of 'what  is  called  reformation,  but  which  does 
not  always  prove  to  be  for  the  better.  Everything  human 
and  divine  seems  to  be  in  the  way  of  being  new -modeled. 
Religion,  in  particular,  is  turned  and  twisted  into  a  variety 
of  appearances ;  some  of  them  awkward  enough  ;  and  some 
tending  to  very  mischievous  consequences  —  the  destruction 
of  true  religion  and  virtue,  by  confounding  truth  with  error, 
right  with  wrong,  good  with  evil.  Yet  all  appeal  to  the  Bi- 
ble, and  from  it  pretend  to  derive  proof  to  their  system. 
None  that  I  know  of  have  professedly  set  about  making  a 
new  Bible,  i.  e.,  writing  a  new  book,  with  that  title  :  But  if 
they  alter  the  old  one,  in  its  sense  and  meaning,  they,  in 
truth,  make  a  new  one.  And  what  better  do  they  do,  who 
put  new  and  strange  meanings  on  old  words  and  phrases  — 
who  alter  the  translation,  or  force  the  sense,  till  it  bows  and 
bends  into  a  compliance  with  a  favorite  system  ;  and  where 
this  fails,  boldly  charge  the  original  with  error  and  interpo- 
lation. The  surest  way  to  guard  against  this  mischief  is  to 
attend  to  the  interpretations  of  the  oldest  Christians,  and  of 
the  universal  Church.  Having  conversed  with  the  Apostles, 
or  with  apostolic  men,  they  were  best  acquainted  with  the 
mind  and  intention  of  the  writers.  They  knew  the  force 
and  idiom  of  the  language  in  which  those  books  were  writ- 
ten. The  manners  and  customs  to  which  many  passages  al- 
lude were  familiar  to  them  :  For  they  were  the  language, 
and  manners,  and  customs  of  their  own  country,  and  nearly 
of  their  own  age.  A  prudential  regard  to  our  own  charac- 
ters, justice  to  the  sacred  books,  and  to  the  people  of  our 
charge,  will  therefore  require,  that  we  pay  a  due  regard  to 
the  more  early  interpretations  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  in  the 
primitive  Church  :  For  we  may  rest  assured,  that  those  doc- 
trines, and  that  interpretation  of  Scripture,  which  was  com- 
mon to  all  Churches  in  their  early  period,  was  from  the 
Apostles,  and  therefore  may  be  depended  on  by  us.  By  this 
conduct  we  shall  secure  ourselves  against  new-fangled  no- 
tions in  religion  ;  against  its  corruption  by  vain  philosophy, 
metaphysical  reasonings,  and  the  perplexities  of  school  di- 


278  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

vinity,  which  have,  one  or  other  of  them,  been  the  perpetual 
corrupters  of  true  religion  :  And  let  us  remember,  that  in 
religion,  novelty  and  truth  can  scarcely  come  together :  For 
nothing  in  religion  is  now  true,  that  was  not  true  seventeen 
hundred  years  ago.  Philosophy  may  shift  its  fashion,  meta- 
physics may  be  in  or  out  of  vogue,  or  may  change  its  princi- 
ples, or  its  appearance,  school  divinity  may  be  nice  in  its 
definitions,  exact  in  its  methods,  and  positive  in  its  decisions, 
but  none  of  them  alter  the  nature  of  the  Christian  Religion ; 
that  remains  the  same,  and  its  true  principles,  doctrines,  and 
practice  continue  the  same  now  that  they  were  in  its  early 
period.  It  teaches  the  means  of  reconciliation  with  GOD, 
through  Christ :  And  it  teaches  the  same  things  now  which 
it  ever  did,  and  none  other.  It  is  therefore  our  business  to 
hold  the  same  faith,  teach  the  same  doctrines,  inculcate  the 
same  principles,  submit  to  the  same  government,  recommend 
the  same  practice,  enforce  the  same  obedience,  holiness,  and 
purity,  and  to  administer  the  same  sacraments,  that  the 
Apostles  and  primitive  Christians  did.  And  we  ought  to  do 
all  this,  plainly  and  fully,  leaving  ourselves,  our  own  inter- 
ests, and  honor,  and  aggrandizement,  out  of  the  case.  If 
men  will  receive  our  testimony,  we  must  bless  GOD,  and  be 
encouraged  in  our  duty:  If  they  reject  it,  we  must  pray 
more  earnestly  to  GOD  for  them.  But  let  us  never  think  of 
accommodating  our  systems,  or  our  sermons  to  popular  hu- 
mor or  fancy  ;  nor  to  the  flattering  of  the  pride  and  vanity 
of  the  human  heart ;  nor  to  the  bolstering  of  men  up,  in  an 
opinion  of  their  own  worthiness,  ability,  or  sufficiency  ;  nor 
to  the  lessening  of  the  obligation  of  holiness  and  purity  ; 
nor  to  the  weakening  of  the  influence  of  the  government  and 
discipline  of  the  Church,  or  of  the  necessity  and  efficacy  of 
the  holy  sacraments.  If  we  do,  we  shall  be  false  to  GOD 
and  our  Saviour,  to  the  people  under  our  care,  and  to  our 
own  most  solemn  vows  and  promises  ;  and  we  must  expect 
to  receive  the  recompense  of  traitors  —  the  condemnation  of 
unfaithful  stewards. 

Having  mentioned   the  sacraments  of  our  holy  religion, 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  279 

forgive  me,  if  I  trespass  a  few  minutes  longer  on  your  pa- 
tience, in  speaking  more  particularly  on  that  subject.  The 
inattention  of  many  to  these  holy  institutions  must  be  a 
matter  of  grief  to  all  good  Clergymen. 

I  hope  that  the  members  of  our  own  Church  are  not  gen- 
erally reprehensible  with  regard  to  the  presenting  of  their 
Children  to  holy  Baptism.  But  the  instances  of  adult  Bap- 
tisms that  do  occur,  show  that  there  is  somewhere  a  blamable 
remissness.  If  children  are  suffered  to  grow  up  to  maturity 
without  being  initiated  into  the  Christian  Church,  the  want 
of  due  consideration  too  often  keeps  them  away  from  the 
solemn  Rite,  or  bashf  ulness  induces  them  to  insist  on  its  pri- 
vate administration.  And  should  they,  while  unbaptized, 
become  masters  or  mistresses  of  families,  their  children  will 
probably  grow  up  in  the  same  unregenerate  state.  We 
ought  therefore  to  be  constant,  and  earnest,  in  explaining 
the  nature  of  Baptism  to  our  people ;  pointing  out  its  bene- 
fits, and,  in  all  meekness  and  love,  urging  them  to  a  consci- 
entious compliance  with  their  duty  :  That  being  regenerate, 
and  made  members  of  Christ's  mystical  body,  by  baptism, 
they  may  be  sealed  with  the  seal  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  in  Con- 
firmation, advanced  to  the  rank  of  adult  Christians,  and 
entitled  to  the  privilege  of  celebrating  the  Holy  Eucharist 
with  their  brethren,  —  commemorating  the  death  and  sacri- 
fice of  their  dear  Redeemer,  and  participating  in  all  the 
blessings  of  his  atonement.  And, 

Was  the  nature  of  this  last  mentioned  institution  better 
understood,  I  must  suppose  people  would  more  generally 
comply  with  it.  In  some  congregations  the  number  of 
Communicants  is  indeed  respectable ;  in  others  but  small.1 

1  It  must  be  acknowledged,  in  honor  to  the  female  sex,  that  they  are 
much  more  numerous  in  their  attendance  at  the  Holy  Communion,  than 
the  men.  It  may  be  said  that  the  softness  and  tenderness  of  heart 
which  they  possess,  the  nature  of  their  education,  and  their  mode  of 
life,  render  them  more  susceptible  of  religious  impressions,  and  dispose 
them  better  to  the  exercise  of  gratitude  and  devotion.  Should  it  be  so, 
the  fact  remains  the  same.  They  were  the  first  believers,  witnesses,  and 
preachers  of  our  Saviour's  resurrection,  and  seem  always  to  have  been 


280  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

Be  it  our  care,  then,  to  set  this  matter  in  its  true  light,  by 
explaining  the  nature  and  design  of  the  Holy  Communion  to 
our  several  Congregations,  making  them  sensible  of  the  ines- 
timable blessings  to  be  thereby  obtained. 

Some  writers  on  this  subject,  under  the  idea  of  making  it 
plain  to  ordinary  capacities,  have,  I  fear,  banished  all  spirit- 
ual meaning,  by  discarding  all  mystery,  from  it  —  making  it 
a  mere  empty  remembrance  of  Christ's  death.  Others  have 
considered  it  as  an  arbitrary  command,  and  an  instance  of 
GOD'S  sovereignty  over  us  —  requiring  our  obedience  for 
wrath's  sake.  Others  represent  it  simply  as  the  renewal  of 
our  Christian  Covenant,  and  expecting  no  particular  benefits 
from  it.  The  primitive  Christians  had  very  different  senti- 
ments from  these,  concerning  the  Holy  Communion,  and  so 
I  suppose  our  Church  has  also.  They  considered  it  not  as 
the  renewal  of  the  Christian  Covenant,  but  a  privilege  to 
which  the  Christian  Covenant,  into  which  we  had  been  ad- 
mitted by  Baptism,  and  which  had  been  ratified  in  Confir- 
mation, entitled  us.  Nor  as  an  arbitrary  command  of  GOD, 
to  show  his  sovereign  authority  over  us.  Nor  as  a  bare  re- 
membrance of  Christ's  death.  But  as  the  appointed  means 
of  keeping  up  that  spiritual  life  which  we  received  in  our 
New-birth  ;  and  of  continuing  that  interest  in  the  benefits 
and  blessings  of  Christ's  passion  and  death,  which  was  made 
over  to  us,  when  we  became  members  of  his  mystical  body. 
They  called  and  esteemed  it  to  be  the  Christian  Sacrifice, 
commemorative  of  the  great  sacrifice  of  atonement  which 
Christ  had  made  for  the  sins  of  the  whole  world ;  wherein, 
under  the  symbols  of  bread  and  the  cup,  the  body  and  blood 
of  Christ  which  he  offered  up,  and  which  were  broken  and 

the  chosen  instruments  of  God,  to  keep  up  a  sense  of  religion,  piety,  and 
devotion  in  the  world.  May  God  bless  and  reward  them,  and  grant  that 
their  example  may  have  a  proper  influence  on  the  other  sex!  It  is  cer- 
tain the  same  truths  do  not  make  the  same  impression  on  them.  And 
yet  they  have  the  same  need  of  redemption  and  salvation  —  the  same 
sinful  nature,  from  which  to  be  delivered  —  are  under  the  same  curse 
and  condemnation  for  sin,  —  and  must  be  saved  by  the  same  means,  and 
the  same  Saviour. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  281 

shed  upon  the  cross,  are  figured  forth ;  and  being  presented 
to  GOD  our  heavenly  Father,  by  his  Priest  here  on  earth, 
the  merits  of  Christ  for  the  remission  of  sins  are  pleaded  by 
him,  and  we  trust,  by  our  great  High  Priest  himself  in 
heaven :  And  being  sanctified  by  prayer,  thanksgiving,  the 
words  of  institution,  and  the  invocation  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
are  divided  among  the  Communicants  as  a  Feast  upon  the 
Sacrifice.  And  they  did  believe,  that  all  who  worthily  par- 
took of  the  consecrated  Elements,  did  really  and  truly, 
though  mystically  and  spiritually,  partake  of  the  Body  and 
Blood  of  Christ.  Our  Church  evidently  teaches  the  same 
thing  in  her  Catechism,  defining  "  the  inward  part,  or  thing 
signified,"  by  the  bread  and  wine  in  the  Holy  Communion, 
to  be  "  the  body  and  blood  of  Christ,  which  are  verily  and 
indeed  taken  and  received  by  the  faithful  in  the  Lord's  Sup- 
per." This  doctrine  seems  to  be  founded  on  what  our  Sav- 
iour said  in  the  sixth  chapter  of  St.  John's  Gospel,  concern- 
ing eating  his  flesh  and  drinking  his  blood,  which  when 
compared  with  the  institution  of  the  blessed  Eucharist,  as 
recorded  by  the  Evangelists,  will  sufficiently  justify  the 
Church  in  her  opinion  and  judgment.  We  have  therefore  a 
right  to  believe  and  say,  that  in  the  Holy  Communion,  the 
faithful  receiver  does,  in  a  mystical  and  spiritual  manner,  eat 
and  drink  the  Body  and  Blood  of  Christ,  represented  by  the 
consecrated  bread  and  wine  ;  and  does  thereby  partake  in 
the  atonement  made  by  the  passion  and  death  of  Christ, 
having  remission  through  him,  of  all  past  sins,  and  eternal 
life  assured  to  him. 

And  now,  Reverend  Brethren,  that  you  may  see  how 
necessary  it  is  for  you  to  exert  yourselves  in  support  of  the 
Holy  Catholic  Faith^  let  me  request  you  to  direct  your  at- 
tention particularly  to  this  country ;  and  when  you  observe 
how  low  some  have  set  the  doctrines  and  principles  of  re- 
ligion —  How  others  are  depressing  the  Offices,  corrupting 
the  Government,  and  degrading  the  Priesthood  of  Christ's 
Church  —  on  the  one  side,  —  his  divinity  denied  on  the 
other,  —  Two  of  the  old  Creeds,  the  guards  of  the  true  faith 


282  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

against  Arianism  and  Socinianism,  thrown  out  —  The  de- 
scent of  Christ  into  Hell,  the  invisible  place  of  departed 
souls,  by  which  his  perfect  humanity,  and  our  perfect  re- 
demption, of  soul,  as  well  as  of  body,  are  ascertained,  re- 
jected from  the  Apostles'  Creed — Baptism  reduced  to  a 
mere  ceremony,  by  excluding  from  it  the  idea  of  regen era- 
ion  —  And  you  will  own  with  me,  that  the  strongest  obli- 
gations lie  upon  us,  to  hold  fast,  and  contend  earnestly  for, 
;he  faith  as  it  was  once  delivered  to  the  Saints  —  To  abide 
the  government,  support  the  doctrines,  retain  the  princi- 
ples, explain  the  true  nature  and  meaning  of  the  sacraments 
and  offices  of  the  Church,  and  endeavor  to  restore  them  to 
hat  station  and  estimation,  in  which  the  primitive  Chris- 
ians  placed  and  held  them.  Error  often  becomes  popular 
and  contagious,  and  then  no  one  can  tell  how  far  it  will 
spread,  nor  where  end.  We  must  in  such  cases  recur  to  first 
principles,  and  there  take  our  stand.  The  Bible  must  be 
the  ground  of  our  faith.  And  the  doctrines,  practices,  and 
old  Liturgies  of  the  primitive  Church  will  be  of  great  use  to 
lead  us  to  the  true  meaning  of  the  Holy  Books.  Judgment 
and  prudence  must  no  doubt  be  exercised :  But  truth  must 
not  be  sacrificed  to  prudence,  nor  must  judgment  be  warped 
by  attachment  to  system,  or  compliance  with  popular  error 
and  prejudice. 

This  was  the  last  formal  charge  given  by  Bishop 
Seabury  to  the  clergy  of  his  diocese,  and  its  teach- 
ings were  valuable,  whether  considered  in  reference 
to  the  unbelief  of  the  times,  or  to  the  movement  of 
the  clergy  and  laity  in  the  southern  States  to  revise 
and  alter  the  Liturgy  and  government  of  the  Church. 
The  part  in  the  conclusion  that  relates  to  the  Holy 
Eucharist  was  in  conformity  with  the  main  doctrine 
of  the  communion  office  which  he  had  just  set  forth, 
and  which  he  must  have  used  himself  to  be  consistent 
with  his  own  recommendation. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  283 

His  residence  in  New  London  was  the  parsonage 
built  in  1743,  and  still  standing  in  good  condition, 
though  recently  somewhat  modernized,  and  now 
passed  out  of  the  hands  of  the  Church.  While  the 
new  house  of  worship  was  in  the  process  of  erection, 
to  take  the  place  of  the  one  destroyed  when  the  town 


Residence  of  Bishop  Seabury  during  his  Episcopate. 

was  burnt,  the  bishop  was  permitted  to  hold  his  serv- 
ices in  the  court-house ;  "  but  he  is  said,  I  know  not 
on  what  authority,  to  have  celebrated  the  holy  com- 
munion every  Sunday,  after  morning  service,  in  the 
large  parlor  of  the  parsonage  where  he  lived.1 "  This 
could  only  mean  "  every  Sunday  "  when  he  was  not 
on  a  visitation  to  other  parishes.  He  usually  had  a 
deacon  for  his  assistant,  and  the  Rev.  Reuben  Ives 
was  one  of  the  first  who  served  him  in  this  capacity. 

1  Hallam's  Annals  of  St.  James's  Church,  New  London,  p.  71. 


284  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

Writing  May  1,  1787,1  to  his  friend  and  classmate, 
Tillotson  Bronson,  ordained  with  him  on  the  same 
day  at  Derby,  Mr.  Ives,  by  way  of  apology  for  not 
meeting  him  at  the  approaching  convocation,  said : 
"  But  when  I  consider  the  distance,  the  trouble,  and 
other  trifles,  and  the  little  advantage  my  company 
would  be,  and  above  all  the  opinion  and  desire  the 
bishop  has  of  keeping  the  church  open,  I  may  as  well 
content  myself  where  I  am  for  the  present.  How- 
ever, I  hope,  with  the  blessing  of  God,  to  see  you  be- 
fore long I  wish  one  thing  might  be  brought 

to  pass,  and  that  is,  that  the  bishop  might  be  more  in 
the  centre  of  the  churches.  I  think  it  would  be  a 
great  advantage,  and  help  to  keep  a  union  among 
them." 

Poverty  was  the  inheritance  of  the  clergy  of  that 
time,  and  the  income  of  the  writer  of  this  letter  at 
New  London  was  very  small  and  eked  out  by  the  in- 
struction of  a  few  private  scholars  during  the  sum- 
mer. The  condition  of  the  bishop  in  this  respect  was 
scarcely  better  than  that  of  his  clergy.  The  parish 
allowed  him  a  small  salary  as  rector,  and  contribu- 
tions towards  his  support  were  made  by  some  of  the 
larger  churches  of  the  diocese.  In  October,  1785, 
Trinity  Parish,  New  Haven,  voted  "  that  the  sum  of 
ten  pounds  be  paid  unto  the  Right  Rev.  Samuel  Sea- 
bury,  Bishop  of  this  State ; "  and  two  years  after- 
wards a  like  amount  was  voted  him  by  the  Vestry ; 
but  the  vote  contained  a  proviso  that  this  "  dona- 
tion" should  not  be  considered  as  a  precedent  for 
any  future  claims  by  the  bishop  upon  Trinity  Church. 
At  a  convention  of  lay  representatives  from  several 

1  MS.  Letter. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  285 

of  the  parishes,  held  in  Waterbury,  February  13, 
1788,  to  devise  ways  and  means  for  his  support,  it 
was  resolved  to  recommend  that  each  Episcopal 
church  of  the  State  raise  "  the  sum  of  one  half  penny 
on  the  pound  on  its  grand  levy/'  as  a  salary  to  the 
bishop,  —  this  recommendation,  if  confirmed  by  sub- 
sequent votes  in  parish  meetings,  to  be  continued  in 
force  for  two  years.  How  much  was  obtained  under 
this  action  cannot  be  determined.  Probably  not 
much,  as  the  people  generally  were  in  depressed  cir- 
cumstances and  unwilling  to  be  burdened  with  a  tax 
which  they  could  so  easily  decline.  In  a  letter  to 
a  friend  in  Dublin,  as  early  as  April  17,  1786,  the 
bishop  said  :  "  I  am  at  present  at  New  London,  in 
Connecticut,  where  I  find  everything  easy  and  quiet, 
and,  as  far  as  I  know,  everybody  satisfied  with  me. 
My  situation,  however,  is  rather  disagreeable,  as 
there  is  no  settled  support  for  me,  as  the  poverty  of 
the  people  is  so  great  since  they  have  obtained  their 
independency,  and  daily  increasing." 

Bishop  Seabury  received  from  the  British  govern- 
ment £50  half  pay  as  a  chaplain  in  the  king's  Ameri- 
can regiment ;  and  a  few  friends  in  England,  among 
them  Dr.  Home,  then  Dean  of  Canterbury,  Kev. 
Jonathan  Boucher,  and  William  Stevens,  Esq.,  associ- 
ated themselves  together  and  engaged  to  send  him 
annually  £50  from  the  date  of  his  arrival  in  Connect- 
icut. This  engagement  was  faithfully  kept  to  the 
day  of  his  death,  and  was  an  equivalent  for  the  sti- 
pend which  had  been  withdrawn  by  the  Society  for 
the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel.  He  put  in  a  claim 
for  extraordinary  service  rendered  to  the  crown  in 
the  beginning  of  the  war,  but  it  does  not  appear  to 


286  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

have  been  favorably  considered.  The  following  let- 
ter shows  this,  and  comes  very  properly  in  this  con- 
nection :  — 

NEW  LONDON,  CONNECTICUT,  December  15,  1788. 

CHAKLES  COOKE,  ESQB.  :  — 

DEAK  SIR, —  I  am  much  obliged  to  you  for  your  kind  let- 
ter of  the  2d  September  last,  inclosing  the  notification,  etc., 
from  the  Office  of  American  Claims,  Lincoln's  Inn  Fields.  I 
now  send  you  an  affidavit  according  to  the  form  transmitted 
to  me,  which  you  will  please  to  present  at  the  Office  with 
my  acknowledgments.  I  never  knew  whether  any  tempo- 
rary allowance  was  ever  made  me  at  that  Office,  and  beg 
you  will  inquire  about  it  for  me,  and  give  me  any  informa- 
tion you  may  get. 

I  herewith  transmit  a  power  of  Attorney,  authenticated 
in  the  best  manner  I  could  think  of.  It  is  dated  more  than 
a  year  ago  —  particular  circumstances  having  prevented  its 
being  sent  sooner.  I  also  send  a  certificate  for  Half-pay 
from  June,  1787,  to  June,  1788.  There  is  a  Certificate  for 
a  half  year  before  in  the  hands  of .  George  Chamberlain,  Es- 
quire, of  Wimbledon,  Surrey,  which  he  will  deliver  to  you. 
I  owe  to  the  Estate  of  Col.  Hicks,  my  late  agent,  fifteen 
shillings,  which  you  will  please  to  pay  to  Mr.  Chamberlain, 
the  Executor,  as  soon  as  you  shall  be  in  cash  on  my  account. 
Please  also  to  make  my  acknowledgments  to  Mr.  Chamber- 
lain. 

The  power  of  attorney  I  have  sent  is  a  general  one,  as 
well  as  to  receive  my  half  pay,  because  I  shall  have  some 
other  business  to  transact  which  will  require  it,  and  of  which 
I  will  write  to  you  immediately  after  Christmas,  and  shall 
then  send  a  half  year's  certificate. 

Remember  me  to  my  friend  Roome.  Tell  him  I  will 
write  to  him  at  the  same  time.  Wishing  you  health  and 
prosperity,  I  remain  your  affectionate,  humble  servant.1 

1  MS.  Letter-Book. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  287 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

• 

CONVENTION  AT  WILMINGTON,  AND  DOCUMENTS  FROM  ENGLAND  ; 
BISHOPS  ELECT  AND  THEIR  DEPARTURE  FROM  AMERICA;  DR. 
GRIFFITH,  AND  LETTER  OF  BENJAMIN  MOORE;  DRS.  WHITE  AND 
PROVOOST  CONSECRATED,  AND  CONVOCATION  IN  WALLINGFORD; 
CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  BISHOPS  SKINNER,  PROVOOST,  AND  WHITE. 

A.  D.  1786-1787. 

A  GENERAL  convention  was  held  in  Wilmington, 
Del.,  October  10  and  11,  1786,  consisting  of  ten 
clergymen  and  eleven  laymen,  —  a  smaller  number 
than  assembled  at  Philadelphia  in  the  preceding  June 
—  and  then  adopted  a  second  address  to  the  arch- 
bishops and  bishops  of  the  Church  of  England.  It 
was  not  considered  a  new  convention,  but  an  ad- 
journed one,  and  the  first  business  was  to  attend  to 
the  reading  of  the  letter  of  the  archbishops  with  the 
forms  of  testimonials  and  the  act  of  Parliament,  re- 
ceived since  the  last  meeting.  While  a  readiness  was 
shown  to  give  Episcopal  consecration  to  persons  from 
this  country,  properly  recommended,  and  the  way 
prepared,  the  changes  in  the  Liturgy,  as  appeared  in 
"  The  Proposed  Book,"  were  far  from  being  accepta- 
ble to  the  English  prelates.  "  It  was  impossible," 
said  they  in  their  letter,  "  not  to  observe  with  con- 
cern that  if  the  essential  doctrines  of  our  common 
faith  were  retained,  less  respect,  however,  was  paid  to 
our  Liturgy  than  its  own  excellence,  and  your  de- 


288  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

clared  attachment  to  it,  had  led  us  to  expect.  Not 
to  mention  a  variety  of  verbal  alterations,  of  the  ne- 
cessity or  propriety  of  which  we  are  by  no  means 
satisfied,  we  saw  with  grief  that  two  confessions  of 
our  Christian  faith,  respectable  for  their  antiquity, 
have  been  entirely  laid  aside ;  and  that  even  in  that 
which  is  called  the  Apostles'  Creed,  an  article,  is 
omitted  which  was  thought  necessary  to  be  inserted, 
with  a  view  to  a  particular  heresy  in  a  very  early 
age  of  the  Church,  and  has  ever  since  had  the  vener- 
able sanction  of  universal  reception." 

The  action  of  the  clergy  and  laity  at  the  meeting 
in  June,  changing  the  offensive  article  of  their  eccle- 
siastical constitution  so  as  to  allow  a  bishop  a  seat  in 
the  general  convention  by  virtue  of  his  office,  and 
the  right  of  presiding  in  the  same,  if  one  of  the  order 
should  be  present,  had  not  been  received  in  England 
when  the  archbishops  wrote  the  second  letter.  Hence 
they  referred  to  this  in  connection  with  other  mat- 
ters, and  strongly  urged  that  the  necessary  changes 
be  made  before  repeating  the  declaration  which  bish- 
ops-elect from  America  were  expected  to  subscribe 
according  to  the  tenth  article  of  their  constitution. 
"  We  should  forget  the  duty  which  we  owe  to  our 
own  Church,"  said  the  two  archbishops,  speaking 
for  themselves  and  all  their  brethren  in  office,  "  and 
act  inconsistently  with  that  sincere  regard  which  we 
bear  to  yours,  if  we  were  not  explicit  in  declaring 
that,  after  the  disposition  we  have  shown  to  comply 
with  the  prayer  of  your  address,  we  think  it  incum- 
bent upon  you  to  use  your  utmost  exertions  also  for 
the  removal  of  any  stumbling-block  of  offense  which 
may  possibly  prove  an  obstacle  to  the  success  of  it. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  289 

We  therefore  most  earnestly  exhort  you  that  previ- 
ously to  the  time  of  your  making  such  subscription, 
you  restore  to  its  integrity  the  Apostles'  Creed,  in 
which  you  have  omitted  an  article  merely,  as  it  seems, 
from  misapprehension  of  the  sense  in  which  it  is  un- 
derstood by  our  Church ;  nor  can  we  help  adding 
that  we  hope  you  will  think  it  but  a  decent  proof 
of  the  attachment  which  you  profess  to  the  services 
of  our  Liturgy,  to  give  to  the  other  two  creeds  a 
place  in  your  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  even  though 
the  use  of  them  should  be  left  discretional.  We 
should  be  inexcusable,  too,  if  at  the  time  when  you 
are  requesting  the  establishment  of  bishops  in  your 
Church,  we  did  not  strongly  represent  to  you  that 
the  eighth  article  of  your  ecclesiastical  constitution 
appears  to  us  to  be  a  degradation  of  the  clerical,  and 
still  more  of  the  Episcopal  character.  We  persuade 
ourselves,  that  in  your  ensuing  convention  some 
alteration  will  be  thought  necessary  in  this  article, 
before  this  reaches  you ;  or,  if  not,  due  attention  will 
be  given  to  it  in  consequence  of  our  representation." 
The  letter  containing  these  and  other  recommenda- 
tions, and  the  accompanying  papers,  were  referred  to 
a  committee  consisting  of  one  clerical  and  one  lay 
deputy  from  each  State ;  and  the  convention,  in  ac- 
cordance with  their  report,  restored  to  the  Apostles' 
Creed  the  article,  "  He  descended  into  Efell,"  and 
inserted  in  the  "  new  proposed  Book  of  Common 
Prayer"  immediately  after  that  creed  the  Nicene, 
prefaced  by  a  rubric  permitting  its  alternative  use. 
When  all  the  changes  had  been  completed,  an  answer 
was  prepared  and  signed  by  Samuel  Provoost,  Presi- 
dent, in  behalf  of  the  members  of  the  convention, 

19 


290  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

offering  unanimous  and  hearty  thanks  to  the  Arch- 
bishops of  Canterbury  and  York,  for  the  continuance 
of  their  Christian  attention  to  this  Church,  and  par- 
ticularly for  having  so  speedily  acquired  the  legal 
capacity  to  consecrate  bishops  for  countries  out  of  his 
majesty's  dominions.  "  "We  have  taken,"  they  pro- 
ceeded to  say,  "  into  our  most  serious  and  deliberate 
consideration,  the  several  matters  so  affectionately 
recommended  to  us  in  those  communications,  and 
whatever  could  be  done  towards  a  compliance  with 
your  fatherly  wishes  and  advice,  consistently  with 
our  local  circumstances,  and  the  peace  and  unity  of 
our  Church,  hath  been  agreed  to,  as  we  trust  will 
appear  from  the  inclosed  act  of  our  convention, 
which  we  have  the  honor  to  transmit  to  you,  to- 
gether with  the  journal  of  our  proceedings." 

The  next  step  was  to  call  upon  the  deputies  from 
the  several  States  to  ascertain  if  any  persons  had 
been  elected  in  their  conventions  and  recommended 
for  Episcopal  consecration.  It  appeared  that  the 
Kev.  Samuel  Provoost,  D.  D.,  had  been  chosen  and 
recommended  in  New  York,  the  Rev.  William  White, 
D.  D.,  in  Pennsylvania,  and  the  Rev.  David  Griffith, 
D.  D.,  in  Virginia.  Testimonials  in  the  form  pre- 
scribed by  the  archbishops  of  England  were  then 
duly  signed  in  favor  of  each  of  these  gentlemen,  and 
after  some  routine  business  the  convention  adjourned 
to  meet  again  in  Philadelphia  at  the  call  of  the 
special  committee  of  correspondence.  Dr.  Griffith, 
whose  sad  history  forms  a  touching  episode  in  the  an- 
nals of  our  Church,  was  not  provided  with  funds  to  de- 
fray the  expense  of  a  voyage  to  obtain  consecration, 
and  his  poverty  would  not  allow  him  to  undertake 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  291 

it  at  his  own  cost.  He  was  therefore  left  behind 
when  the  others  embarked  for  England,  and  the  fol- 
lowing letter  of  the  Eev.  Mr.  Moore,  an  assistant 
minister  of  Trinity  Church,  to  the  Kev.  Mr.  Parker, 
of  Boston,  not  only  fixes  the  date  of  their  departure, 
but  shows  the  feeling  still  cherished  in  New  York 
towards  the  Bishop  of  Connecticut. 

NEW  YORK,  November  4,  1786. 

MY  DEAB,  SIR,  —  The  day  before  yesterday  Dr.  White 
and  Dr.  Provoost  embarked  on  board  the  Speedy  packet  for 
Old  England  with  the  expectation  of  obtaining  consecration 
from  the  English  bishops.  You  know  there  is  an  act  of  Par- 
liament authorizing  either  of  the  archbishops,  together  with 
such  of  the  bishops  as  they  may  desire  to  call  to  their  assist- 
ance, to  consecrate  bishops  for  the  American  States.  When 
his  Grace  of  Canterbury  sent  a  copy  of  the  act,  in  a  letter 
which  accompanied  it  he  intimated  that  it  was  expected,  be- 
fore persons  were  sent  for  Episcopal  Orders,  every  obstacle 
should  be  removed  by  a  full  compliance  with  the  requisitions 
which  had  been  made.  In  the  late  convention  at  Wilming- 
ton all  objections  were  obviated,  excepting  only  that  it  was 
resolved  not  to  re-admit  the  Athanasian  Creed.  The  gen- 
tlemen, however,  thought  they  might  venture  to  go,  and  I 
dare  say  they  will  succeed.  It  sometimes  happens  in  doubt- 
ful cases  that  to  act  as  if  you  were  sure  of  success  is  the 
most  effectual  way  to  obtain  it.  Possunt  quia  posse  viden- 
tur.  Dr.  Griffith,  who  is  another  bishop-elect,  through  some 
mistake  did  not  obtain  the  necessary  testimonials  from  the 
State  Convention,  and  is,  on  that  account,  detained  a  few 
months  longer. 

I  have  my  fears,  but  am  not  so  very  apprehensive  as  you 
appear  to  be,  that  a  schism  must  take  place  in  our  Church. 
A  few  people  in  this  State,  from  old  grudges  on  the  score  of 
politics,  have  determined  to  circumscribe,  as  far  as  they  pos- 
sibly can,  the  authority  of  Bishop  Seabury.  But  they  will 
not  be  able  to  effect  their  purpose  to  any  great  degree. 


292  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

His  Episcopal  powers  have  already  been  acknowledged  by 
most  of  the  Southern  States,  and  truth  and  justice  will  in 
due  time  get  the  better  of  prejudice  and  partiality. 
Your  affectionate  friend  and  servant, 

B.  MOOKE.1 

Dr.  Smith  had  made  strenuous  efforts  to  be  rec- 
ommended for  consecration  as  Bishop  of  Maryland, 
his  election  having  taken  place  in  1783  ;  but  owing 
to  certain  indiscretions  or  derelictions  from  duty, 
he  failed  to  secure  the  requisite  testimonials.  Some 
who  had  signed  a  document  in  his  support,  at  the 
time  he  was  chosen,  now  withdrew  their  names  and 
gave  the  reason  for  changing  their  opinion.  In  the 
case  of  Dr.  Griffith,  it  was  the  want  of  funds  and 
the  neglect  of  the  Church  in  Virginia  to  provide 
them,  which  delayed  his  voyage  to  England,  and 
eventually  he  relinquished  the  hope  of  it  altogether. 

The  two  bishops-elect,  Drs.  White  and  Provoost, 
arrived  in  London  on  Wednesday,  the  29th  of  No- 
vember, and,  after  the  various  preliminaries  had  been 
duly  settled,  they  were  consecrated  in  the  chapel  of 
Lambeth  Palace,  February  4,  1787,  by  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury,  in  the  presence  of  his  family 
and  household,  and  a  few  others,  among  whom  was 
the  Kev.  Mr.  Duche.  "  I  had  asked  the  archbishop's 
leave  to  introduce  him,"  says  Dr.  White  in  his  Me- 
moirs, "  and  it  was  a  great  satisfaction  to  me  that  he 
was  there  ;  the  recollection  of  the  benefit  which  I 
had  received  from  his  instructions  in  early  life,  and  a 
tender  sense  of  the  attentions  which  he  had  shown 
me  almost  from  my  infancy,  together  with  the  im- 
pressions left  by  the  harmony  which  had  subsisted 

1  Perry's  Historical  Notes  and  Documents,  p.  342. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  293 

between  us  in  the  discharge  of  our  joint  pastoral 
duty  in  Philadelphia,  being  no  improper  accompani- 
ments to  the  feelings  suited  to  the  present  very  inter- 
esting transaction  of  my  life.  I  hope  that  I  felt  the 
weight  of  the  occasion.  May  God  bless  the  medita- 
tions and  the  recollections  by  which  I  had  endeav- 
ored to  prepare  myself  for  it,  and  give  them  their 
due  effect  on  my  temper  and  conduct  in  the  new 
character  in  which  I  am  to  appear." 

The  clergy  of  New  England  were  deeply  interested 
in  all  the  proceedings  of  their  southern  brethren. 
In  none  of  them  was  there  shown  much  desire  for  the 
union  of  the  whole  Church  in  the  United  States,  but 
rather  evidence  of  a  disposition  to  keep  aloof  from 
the  Bishop  of  Connecticut,  and  from  recognizing  the 
validity  of  his  consecration.  At  least  he  felt  alarmed 
at  the  spirit  of  innovation  which  had  crept  into  the 
southern  conventions,  and  if  his  own  See  should  be- 
come vacant  by  his  death  it  could  not  be  foretold 
what  troubles  might  ensue.  Accordingly  he  con- 
voked his  clergy  at  Wallingford  on  the  27th  of  Feb- 
ruary, and  with  a  view  of  vindicating  their  rights 
and  preparing  for  a  possible  schism  in  the  Church, 
they  decided  to  send  another  presbyter  to  Scotland 
for  consecration  as  coadjutor  bishop  to  the  zealous 
Seabury.  The  venerable  Learning,  tried  and  faith- 
ful in  the  service  of  the  Church,  was  first  asked  to 
assume  the  responsibility ;  but  age  and  infirmities 
were  in  the  way,  and  he  declined ;  then  the  saintly 
Mansfield  was  chosen,  but  he  was  unwilling  to  take 
up  a  burden  so  heavy ;  and,  finally,  the  Kev.  Abra- 
ham Jarvis  was  elected  and  deputed  to  proceed  to 
Scotland  "  to  obtain  consecration  that  the  Episcopal 


294  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

office  might  be  canonically  conferred."  "  It  was  in- 
tended," said  his  learned  son,  remarking  on  the 
movement,  "  to  obtain  the  canonical  number  of  bish- 
ops in  New  England  of  the  Scottish  line,  and  thus 
preserve  a  purely  primitive  and  Apostolic  Church, 
holding  fast  the  form  of  sound  words,  and  the  faith 
once  delivered  to  the  saints." 

This  measure,  which  was  to  be  a  last  resort,  was 
not  hurried  to  completion.  Time  was  taken  for  fur- 
ther reflection,  and  the  development  of  events  proved 
the  wisdom  of  delay.  Bishop  Seabury  wrote  at  once 
to  Bishop  Skinner  to  inform  him  of  the  action  of  the 
clergy  and  to  know  how  it  would  be  received  in  Scot- 
land. His  letter  was  dated  from 

WALLINGFORD,  CONNECTICUT,  March  2,  1787. 

I  write  a  short  and  hasty  letter  from  this  place,  where  I 
have  been  attending  a  meeting  of  my  Clergy.  They  are 
much  alarmed  at  the  steps  taken  by  the  Clergy  and  Laity 
to  the  south  of  us,  and  are  very  apprehensive  that,  should  it 
please  God  to  take  me  out  of  the  world,  the  same  spirit  of 
innovation  in  the  government  and  Liturgy  of  the  Church 
would  be  apt  to  rise  in  this  State,  which  has  done  so  much 
mischief  in  our  neighborhood.  The  people,  you  know,  es- 
pecially in  this  country,  are  fond  of  exercising  power  when 
they  have  an  opportunity ;  and  should  this  See  become  va- 
cant, the  Clergy  may  find  themselves  under  the  fatal  neces- 
sity of  falling  under  the  Southern  establishment,  which  they 
consider  as  a  departure  from  Apostolical  institution. 

To  prevent  all  danger  of  this,  they  are  anxious  to  have  a 
Bishop  coadjutor  to  me,  and  will  send  a  gentleman  to  Scot- 
land for  consecration  as  soon  as  they  know  that  the  measure 
meets  with  the  full  approbation  of  my  good  and  highly  re- 
spected brethren  in  Scotland.  It  has  not  only  my  approba- 
tion, but  my  most  anxious  wishes  are,  that  it  may  be  soon 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  295 

carried  into  execution.  You  will,  I  know,  consult  the 
Right  Rev.  Bishops  Kilgour  and  Petrie,  and  will  give  me 
the  necessary  information  as  soon  as  possible.  In  the  mean- 
time we  shall  be  making  the  proper  arrangements  here,  that 
the  person  fixed  on  may  avail  himself  of  the  first  opportu- 
nity of  embarking  after  receipt  of  your  letter. 

I  can,  at  this  time,  say  no  more,  than  to  request  you  to 
remember  me  most  respectfully  and  affectionately  to  our 
good  Primus  and  Bishop  Petrie,  to  Mrs.  Skinner  and  family, 
and  to  all  who  think  so  much  of  me  as  sometimes  to  inquire 
about  me. 

To  this  letter,  Bishop  Skinner,  after  consulting  his 
Episcopal  brethren,  returned  the  following  careful 
and  judicious  reply.  It  did  not  reach  the  Bishop  of 
Connecticut  till  "  the  English  Consecrate  "  had  ar- 
rived in  America  and  he  had  extended  courtesies  to 
them  which  were  a  testimony  to  his  efforts  for  union 
and  peace. 

ABERDEEN,  June  20,  1787. 

Anxious,  as  I  ever  am,  to  hear  of  your  welfare,  I  was 
much  refreshed  some  weeks  ago,  even  by  a  short  letter  from 
you,  dated  the  2d  March,  at  Wallingford,  where  it  would 
seem  you  had  been  attending  a  meeting  of  your  Clergy.  I 
lost  no  time  in  communicating  to  our  worthy  Primus  this 
agreeable  intelligence ;  but  it  came  too  late  for  good  Bishop 
Petrie,  who,  to  the  great  regret  of  this  poor  and  desolate 
Church,  was  taken  from  us  by  death  on  the  9th  of  April 
last,  after  a  long  and  painful  struggle  with  a  complication  of 
bodily  infirmities. 

Happily  for  us,  and  through  the  good  Providence  of  God, 
he  was  enabled  to  assist  at  the  consecration  of  a  Coadjutor, 
about  six  weeks  before  his  death.  Your  good  friend,  Mr. 
Macfarlane,  at  Inverness,  was  the  person  made  choice  of  for 
this  office,  who  accordingly  was  promoted  to  the  Episcopate, 
in  the  Primus'  chapel  at  Peterhead,  on  the  7th  day  of  March 
last.  He  has  now  succeeded  to  the  districts  that  were  un- 


296  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

der  the  charge  of  Bishop  Petrie  ;  and,  I  make  no  doubt,  will 
prove  a  zealous  and  faithful  member  of  our  small  Episcopal 
College. 

Last  year,  Bishop  Kilgour,  deeming  himself  too  weak  for 
the  burden  of  this  diocese,  resigned  the  whole  charge  of  it 
into  my  hands,  but  still  continues  to  act  as  Primus,  and  I 
hope  will  yet  be  spared  for  some  time  with  us.  I  sent  your 
letter  to  him  and  a  copy  of  it  to  Bishop  Macfarlane,  and, 
having  received  answers  from  both,  shall  now  lay  before 
you  our  joint  sentiments  on  the  subject  of  your  proposal. 

It  has  given  us  great  concern  to  hear  of  the  ecclesiastical 
proceedings  in  some  of  your  Southern  States.  We  fondly 
hoped  that  Episcopal  Clergymen  would  have  gladly  em- 
braced the  opportunity  of  settling  their  Church  on  a  pure 
and  primitive  footing,  and  of  regulating  their  whole  ecclesi- 
astical polity,  as  well  as  their  doctrine  and  worship,  accord- 
ing to  Apostolical  institution.  In  this  hope,  however,  we 
have  been  sadly  disappointed,  by  the  accounts  we  have  re- 
ceived of  the  nature  and  design  of  their  several  conventions ; 
and  some  extracts  which  were  published  from  their  new 
Liturgy  increased  our  dread  of  a  total  apostasy,  giving  us 
ground  to  apprehend  a  total  departure,  not  only  from  an- 
cient discipline,  but  even  from  "  the  faith  once  delivered  to 
the  saints." 

Hearing  of  their  intended  application  to  the  English  hier- 
archy, we  were  full  of  anxiety  for  the  event  of  it.  The 
character  of  the  present  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  gave  us 
reason  to  think  that  he  would  not  "lay  his  hands  suddenly  " 
on  any  one;  and  farther  information  confirmed  our  good 
opinion  of  his  Grace's  orthodoxy,  which,  we  are  informed, 
would  bend  to  no  solicitation  in  favor  of  Socinian  principles, 
or  the  tenets  of  those  who  "  deny  the  Lord  that  bought 
them."  Nay,  we  have  farther  learned,  and  we  are  led  to 
think  from  good  authority,  that  Drs.  White  and  Provoost, 
the  two  new  American  Prelates,  before  they  left  Lambeth, 
became  bound  in  the  most  solemn  manner  not  to  lay  hands 
on  Dr.  S — th,  or  on  any  other  man  who  calls  in  question 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  297 

the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity,  or  of  our  Saviour's  atonement. 
And  we  are  even  made  to  understand  that  it  was  recom- 
mended to  the  two  Prelates  to  hold  communion  with  the 
Bishop  of  Connecticut,  to  which  recommendation  a  consider- 
able degree  of  credit  seems  to  attach,  from  the  circumstance 
of  no  more  than  two  being  invested  with  the  Episcopal  of- 
fice. 

It  is  moreover  said  that  a  second  edition  of  their  Book  of 
Common  Prayer  has  appeared,  and  on  a  plan  much  more  un- 
exceptionable than  the  first,  there  being  no  alteration  to  the 
worse,  and  some  even  to  the  better.  It  is  presumable,  that 
the  English  Consecrators  have  both  seen  and  are  satisfied 
with  the  Liturgy  which  the  new  Bishops  are  to  use ;  and, 
provided  the  analogy  of  faith  and  the  purity  of  worship  be 
preserved,  it  were  a  pity,  we  should  think,  to  interrupt  Epis- 
copal union  and  communion  in  any  part  of  the  Catholic 
Church.  We  do  not  read  that  the  liturgical  variations, 
which  are  known  to  have  prevailed  in  the  primitive  times, 
occasioned  any  breach  of  communion  among  Bishops,  while 
no  essential  corruptions  were  introduced,  or  impure  addi- 
tions imposed  as  terms  of  communion.  Wherefore,  all  these 
things  duly  considered,  we  are  humbly  of  opinion  that  the 
objects  which  our  good  brother  of  Connecticut  and  his 
Clergy  have  in  view  may  be  now  obtained,  without  putting 
any  of  them  to  the  trouble  and  expense  of  coming  to  Scot- 
land. 

We  can  hardly  imagine  that  the  Bishops  of  Philadelphia 
and  New  York  will  refuse  their  brotherly  assistance  in  the 
measure  which  you  propose  to  us,  or  yet  take  upon  them  to 
impose  their  own  Liturgy  as  the  sole  condition  of  compli- 
ance. Should  this  be  the  case,  and  these  new  Bishops 
either  refuse  to  hold  communion  with  you,  or  grant  it  only 
on  terms  with  which  you  cannot  in  conscience  comply,  there 
would  then  be  no  room  for  us  to  hesitate.  But  fain  would 
we  hope  better  things  of  these  your  American  brethren,  and 
that  there  will  be  no  occasion  for  two  separate  communions 
among  the  Episcopalians  of  the  United  States. 


298  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

"We  are  well  persuaded  that  neither  you  nor  your  Clergy 
would  wish  to  give  any  unnecessary  cause  of  disgust  on 
either  side  the  Atlantic ;  and  prudence,  you  must  be  aware, 
bids  us  turn  our  eyes  to  our  own  situation,  which,  though  it 
affords  no  excuse  for  shrinking  from  duty,  will,  at  the  same 
time,  justify  our  not  stepping  beyond  our  line  any  farther 
than  duty  requires. 

Before  this  reaches  your  hand,  the  English  Consecrate 
will  not  only  have  arrived  in  America,  but  will  also  have 
probably  taken  such  measures  as  will  enable  you  to  judge 
of  the  propriety  of  an  application  to  them  for  the  end  you 
have  in  view.  We  shall  therefore  expect  to  hear  from  you 
at  full  length  on  this  interesting  subject,  and  doubt  not  but 
you  will  believe  us  ever  ready  to  contribute,  as  far  as  is 
necessary  or  incumbent  on  us,  to  the  support  of  primitive 
truth  and  order  in  the  Church  of  Christ. 

I  wrote  you  in  June  last  year,  to  the  care  of  a  friend  at 
New  York,  who  informs  me  that  he  forwarded  my  letter  to 
you,  together  with  a  small  publication  of  mine  which  accom- 
panied it.  I  shall  send  this  by  the  packet,  and  will  be  glad 
to  hear  from  you  how  soon  it  comes  to  hand ;  if  you  have 
leisure  for  a  long  letter  it  will  be  doubly  welcome.  All 
whom  you  met  here  remember  you  most  kindly,  particu- 
larly your  friends  in  this  family,  to  whom  you  will  be  ever 
dear ;  accept  of  their  and  my  warmest  wishes  for  your 
health  and  happiness,  and  believe  me  ever 

Bishop  Seabury  was  alive  to  the  interests  of  the 
Church  in  Connecticut  and  allowed  none  of  the  per- 
plexing questions  that  had  been  raised  to  divert  him 
from  his  parochial  and  Episcopal  duties.  He  was 
preparing  to  visit  the  parishes  in  the  southwestern 
part  of  the  State,  and  to  meet  his  clergy  in  convoca- 
tion, when  the  two  bishops,  recently  consecrated  in 
England,  landed  at  New  York  on  the  afternoon  of 
Easter  Sunday,  April  7th,  after  a  wearisome  voyage 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  299 

of  precisely  seven  weeks.-  He  lost  no  time  in  ad- 
dressing to  each  of  them  letters  of  congratulation, 
and  inviting  a  personal  interview  for  the  purpose  of 
considering  some  plan  of  "  uniformity  in  worship  and 
discipline  among  the  Churches  of  the  different  States." 
Both  letters  bear  the  same  date  and  breathe  the 
same  spirit ;  and  it  will  be  enough  to  copy  from  his 
letter-book  the  one  written  to  Bishop  Provoost,  as 
follows :  — 

NEW  LONDON,  May  1,  1787. 

RIGHT  REVEREND  AND  DEAR  SIR,  —  It  is  with  pleasure 
I  take  this  opportunity  of  presenting  my  congratulations  on 
your  safe  return  to  New  York,  on  the  success  of  your  appli- 
cation to  the  English  Archbishops,  and  your  recovery  from 
your  late  dangerous  illness. 

You  must  be  equally  sensible  with  me  of  the  present  un- 
settled state  of  the  Church  of  England  in  this  country,  and 
of  the  necessity  of  union  and  concord  among  all  its  members 
in  the  United  States  of  America ;  not  only  to  give  stability 
to  it,  but  to  fix  it  on  its  true  and  proper  foundation.  Possi- 
bly, nothing  will  contribute  more  to  this  end,  than  uniform- 
ity in  worship  and  discipline  among  the  churches  of  the  dif- 
ferent States.  It  will  be  my  happiness  to  promote  so  good 
and  necessary  a  work;  and  I  take  the  liberty  to  propose, 
that  before  any  decided  steps  be  taken,  there  be  a  meeting 
of  yourself  and  Bishop  White  and  me,  at  such  time  and 
place  as  shall  be  most  convenient,  to  try  whether  some  plan 
cannot  be  adopted  that  shall,  in  a  quiet  and  effectual  way, 
secure  the  great  object  which  I  trust  we  should  all  heartily 
rejoice  to  see  accomplished.  For  my  own  part  I  cannot 
help  thinking  that  the  most  likely  method  will  be  to  retain 
the  present  Common  Prayer  Book,  accommodating  it  to  the 
civil  Constitution  of  the  United  States.  The  government 
of  the  Church,  you  know,  is  already  settled.  A  body  of 
Canons  will,  however,  be  wanted,  to  give  energy  to  the  gov- 
ernment and  ascertain  its  operation. 


300  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

A  stated  Convocation  of  the  clergy  of  this  State  is  to  be 
held  at  Stamford  on  tbe  Thursday  after  Whitsunday.  As  it 
is  so  near  to  New  York,  and  this  journey  may  contribute  to 
the  reestablishment  of  your  health,  I  should  be  much  re- 
joiced to  see  you  there  ;  more  especially  as  I  think  it  would 
promote  the  great  object,  —  the  union  of  all  the  churches. 
May  God  direct  us  in  all  things  ! 

Believe  me  to  be,  Ht.  Rev.  and  dear  Sir,  your  affectionate 
Brother  and  humble  servant, 

SAMUEL,  Bishop  of  Connecticut. 

There  was  some  solicitude  in  New  England  to 
know  whether  these  bishops  had  returned  to  this 
country  hampered  by  any  restrictions.  Bishop  Sea- 
bury  himself  seems  to  have  expected  that  his  friends 
in  London  would  give  him  information  on  this  point ;  - 
but  after  waiting  in  vain  to  hear  from  them,  he  dis- 
patched the  following  letter  to  his  benefactor  and 
correspondent  in  Old  Broad  Street,  William  Stevens, 
Esq. 

NEW  LONDON,  May  9,  1787. 

MY  VERY  DEAR  SIR,  —  It  is  so  long  since  I  heard  from 
any  of  my  friends  in  London,  that  I  cannot  help  feeling 
some  uneasiness  on  that  account.  I  did  hope  that  I  should 
have  received  some  intelligence  respecting  the  two  Ameri- 
can Bishops,  and  particularly,  whether  they  were  held  under 
any  restrictions,  and  if  so,  what  those  restrictions  were? 
Those  gentlemen  have  returned,  but  I  do  not  find  their  ar- 
rival has  made  much  noise  in  the  country.  I  have  written 
to  them  both,  proposing  an  interview  with  them,  and  an 
union  of  the  Church  of  England  through  all  the  States,  on 
the  ground  of  the  present  Prayer  Book,  only  accommodating 
it  to  the  civil  Constitution  of  this  country ;  and  the  govern- 
ment of  the  Church  to  continue  unaltered  as  it  now  is,  with 
a  body  of  Canons  to  give  energy  to  it,  and  direct  its  opera- 
tions. I  know  not  what  effect  this  overture  may  have.  But 
my  fears  are  greater  than  my  hopes.  Everything  I  can 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  301 

fairly  do  to  preserve  union  and  uniformity  shall  certainly  be 
done. 

My  last  letters  were  accompanied  by  a  packet  of  Charges 
directed  to  my  good  friend,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Boucher,  which  I 
hope  came  safely  to  him.  I  shall  set  out  in  a  week  to  at- 
tend a  meeting  of  the  Connecticut  clergy  at  Stamford.  I 
have  invited  the  two  Bishops  to  visit  us ;  and  as  I  shall  then 
know  how  my  proposals  are  likely  to  be  relished,  I  will  from 
Stamford  write  to  Mr.  Boucher  by  the  way  of  New  York. 
This  goes  via  Boston. 

Your  affectionate  humble  servant, 

S.,  Bp.  Connect. 

It  does  not  appear  that  any  response  was  given 
by  Bishop  Provoost  to  the  courteous  letter  inviting 
him  to  Stamford  and  to  considerations  of  union  and 
amity.  Bishop  White  replied  at  considerable  length, 
and  though  adhering  to  the  general  principles  of  the 
Ecclesiastical  constitution  which  had  been  agreed 
upon,  he  yet  showed  a  willingness,  if  it  should  be 
thought  advisable  by  the  whole  body  of  the  Church, 
to  retain  the  English  Book  of  Common  Prayer  with 
the  exception  of  the  political  parts.  Still  his  letter 
lacked  warmth  and  clearness,  and  Bishop  Seabury, 
evidently  not  pleased  with  its  tone,  made  a  copy  in 
full  and  sent  it  without  comment  to  Mr.  Parker  of 
Boston :  — 

PHILADELPHIA,  May  21,  1787. 

There  is  nothing  I  have  more  at  heart  than  to  see  the 
members  of  our  communion  throughout  the  United  States 
connected  in  one  system  of  Ecclesiastical  Government ;  and 
if  my  meeting  of  you,  in  concurrence  with  Bishop  Provoost, 
can  do  anything  towards  the  accomplishment  of  this  great 
object,  my  very  numerous  engagements  shall  not  hinder  me 
from  taking  a  journey  for  the  purpose.  But  I  must  submit 
it  to  your  consideration  whether  it  will  not  be  best  pre- 


302  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

viously  to  understand  one  another,  as  to  the  views  of  the 
Churches  in  which  we  respectively  preside. 

We  have  been  informed  (but  perhaps  it  is  a  mistake) 
that  the  Bishop  and  Clergy  of  Connecticut  think  our  pro- 
posed Ecclesiastical  Constitution  essentially  wrong  in  the 
leading  parts  of  it.  As  the  general  principles  on  which  it  is 
founded  were  maturely  considered  and  compared  with  the 
maxims  which  prevail  in  the  ecclesiastical  system  of  Eng- 
land, as  they  have  received  the  approbation  of  all  the  Con- 
ventions southward  of  you,  and  of  one  to  the  northward ;  as 
they  were  not  objected  to  by  the  Archbishops  and  Bishops 
of  the  English  Church,  and  as  they  are  generally  thought 
among  us  essential  to  the  giving  of  effect  to  future  ecclesias- 
tical measures,  I  do  not  expect  to  find  the  Churches  in  many 
of  the  States  willing  to  associate  on  any  plan  materially  dif- 
ferent from  this.  If  our  Brethren  in  Connecticut  should  be 
of  opinion  that  the  giving  of  any  share  of  the  Legislative 
power  of  the  Church  to  others  than  those  of  the  Episcopal 
order  is  inconsistent  with  Episcopal  Government,  and  that 
the  requiring  of  the  consent  of  the  Laity  to  ecclesiastical 
laws  is  an  invasion  of  Clerical  rights,  in  this  case,  I  see  no 
prospect  of  doing  good  in  any  other  way  than  contributing 
all  in  my  power  to  promote  a  spirit  of  love  and  peace  be- 
tween us  ;  although  I  shall  continue  to  cultivate  the  hope  of 
our  being  brought  at  some  future  day  to  an  happy  agree- 
ment. 

As  to  the  Liturgy,  if  it  should  be  thought  advisable  by 
the  general  body  of  our  Church  to  adhere  to  the  English 
Book  of  Common  Prayer  (the  political  parts  excepted)  I 
shall  be  one  of  the  first  after  the  appearance  of  such  a  dispo- 
sition, to  comply  with  it  most  punctually. 

Further  than  this,  if  it  should  seem  the  most  probable 
way  of  maintaining  an  agreement  among  ourselves,  I  shall 
use  my  best  endeavors  to  effect  it.  At  the  same  time  I 
must  candidly  express  my  opinion,  that  the  review  of  the 
Liturgy  would  tend  very  much  to  the  satisfaction  of  most  of 
the  members  of  our  communion,  and  to  its  future  success 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  303 

and  prosperity.  The  worst  evil  which  I  apprehend  from  a 
refusal  to  review  is  this,  that  it  will  give  a  great  advan- 
tage to  those  who  wish  to  carry  the  alteration  into  essential 
points  of  doctrine.  Reviewed  it  will  unquestionably  be  in 
some  places,  and  the  only  way  to  prevent  its  being  done  by 
men  of  the  above  description  is  the  taking  it  up  as  a  general 
business.  I  have  been  informed  that  you,  Sir,  and  our 
Brethren  in  Connecticut  think  a  review  expedient,  although 
you  wish  not  to  be  in  haste  in  the  matter.  Our  Brethren  in 
Massachusetts  have  already  done  it.  The  Churches  in  the 
States  southward  of  you  have  sufficiently  declared  their  sen- 
timents ;  for  even  those  which  have  delayed  permitting  the 
use  of  the  new  book,  did  it  merely  on  the  principles  of  the 
want  of  Episcopal  order  among  them. 

If,  Sir,  we  should  be  of  a  different  opinion  in  any  matter, 
I  hope  we  shall  be  so  candid  as  mutually  to  think  it  consist- 
ent with  the  best  intentions,  and  a  sincere  desire  to  promote 
the  interest  of  our  holy  religion.  This  justice  you  have 
always  received  from,  &c.,  &c. 

(Signed)  WM.  WHITE. 

The  above,  my  dear  Sir,  is  the  whole  of  a  letter  from 
Bishop  White,  that  relates  to  the  subject.  It  is  in  answer 
to  one  from  me  to  him,  in  which  I  proposed  a  personal  in- 
terview with  him  and  Bishop  Provoost  previously  to  any  de- 
cided steps  being  taken  respecting  the  Liturgy  and  Govern- 
ment of  the  Church,  and  mentioned  the  old  Liturgy  as  the 
most  likely  bond  of  union.  I  send  it  to  you  without  a  com- 
ment, and  shall  be  glad  of  your  opinion  respecting  it. 

Your  affectionate,  humble  Servant, 

S.,  Bp.  Connect.1 

1  Perry's  Historical  Notes  and  Documents,  pp.  346,  347. 


304  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

CONVOCATION  AT  STAMFORD,  AND  ITS  RESULTS;  LETTER  OP  LEAM- 
ING,  AND  EFFORTS  TO  CONCILIATE;  OBSTACLES  TO  UNION,  AND 
BISHOP  FOR  MASSACHUSETTS  PROPOSED;  WORK  OF  SEABURY  AND 
CONVOCATION  AND  CONSECRATION  AT  NEW  LONDON;  THE  MITRE 
AND  WHEN  IT  WAS  WORN. 

A.  D.  178T. 

THE  overtures  of  Bishop  Seabury  for  union  and 
comprehension  served  to  strengthen  him  with  his 
friends  and  to  weaken  the  arm  of  his  opponents. 
"My  faith,"  wrote  Mr.  Parker,  of  Boston,  to  Mr. 
Hubbard,  of  New  Haven,  that  "  the  brethren  of  the 
lawn "  would  "  accede  to  the  proposal  was  not  very 
strong ;  though  I  think,"  he  continues,  "  had  not  the 
invitation  been  made  quite  so  soon  after  their  arrival, 
and  before  matters  were  arranged  among  themselves, 
Bishop  White  would  have  accepted  it,  he  having  fre- 
quently expressed  his  mind  to  me  by  letter,  of  a 
readiness  to  coalesce  with  his  Northern  brethren,  and 
to  form  one  Church  in  all  the  essentials  of  doctrine, 
discipline,  and  worship.  Some  strong  prejudices, 
upon  the  old  score  of  politics,  still  remain  in  the 
minds  of  the  New  York  gentlemen  against  Bishop 
Seabury,  and  therefore  of  their  bishop  your  deponent 
saith  not.  The  grand  obstacle  to  a  union,  I  foresee, 
will  be  in  matters  of  government.  The  southern 
States  have  admitted  laymen  to  take  part  with  them : 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  305 

Connecticut  has  not.  ^hey  cannot  rid  themselves  of 
the  lay  brethren,  and  you  will  not  admit  laymen. 
This  will  keep  you  apart.  I  impatiently  wait  to 
hear  the  result  of  your  meeting." 

The  convocation  at  Stamford  could  do  nothing,  un- 
der the  circumstances,  beyond  what  had  been  already 
attempted.  The  clergy  were  inclined  to  leave  the 
matter  very  much  in  the  hands  of  their  bishop,  in 
whom  they  had  entire  confidence,  and  to  let  time 
work  the  changes  necessary  to  reconcile  discordant 
opinions.  They  had  taken  steps  to  secure  the  suc- 
cession in  the  Scottish  line,  and  until  they  should 
hear  from  their  application  they  might  well  be  con- 
tent to  rest  in  quietness  and  cherish  good  hopes. 

Individual  effort,  however,  was  made  to  create  a 
stronger  feeling  to  the  southward  in  favor  of  union, 
and  the  venerable  Learning,  among  other  reasons, 
urged  it  as  a  defense  against  the  enemies  of  the 
Church.  He  foresaw  what  could  not  be  unknown  to 
the  most  intelligent  observer,  that  continued  division 
would  be  in  the  way  of  all  prosperity,  and  a  virtual 
surrender  of  the  very  principles  which  the  Church  in 
this  country  had  long  sought  to  establish.  His  letter 
to  Bishop  White,  written  a  month  after  the  meeting 
at  Stamford,  will  give  his  views  and  his  desire  for  an 
early  and  private  conference  of  the  bishops  to  adjust 
matters  and  correct  misunderstandings. 

STRATFORD,  July  9,  1787. 

MY  VERY  DEAR  AND  REV.  SIR,  —  I  have  received  your 
kind  favor  of  tlie  21st  of  last  month,  for  which  you  have 
my  hearty  thanks.  Your  views  of  a  union  of  the  Church  in 
these  States  give,  me  the  greatest  pleasure,  and  you  are 
pleased  to  desire  me  to  consider  what  will  be  the  best 
20 


306  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

method  to  accomplish  the  end  desired,  and  to  communicate 
it  to  you. 

It  appears  to  me,  that  if  you,  Bishop  Provoost,  and 
Bishop  Seabury  could  have  a  private  meeting,  all  matters 
might  be  adjusted  in  such  a  manner  that  a  union  might  be 
easily  effected.  For  all  those  difficulties  which  disturb  that 
mutual  concord,  which  ought  to  "be  among  -Christians,  have 
their  rise  from  some  little  misunderstandings.  And^pro- 
vided  the  parties  were  brought  together,  and  would  explain 
themselves  to  each  other,  in  meekness  and  lw.,  all  disagree- 
able passions  would  subside  and  be  extinguished  forever. 

But  to  reconcile  differences,  when  they  are  come  to  their 
full  growth,  is  attended  with  so  many  difficulties,  that  it 
seldom  proves  successful.  Will  it,  therefore,  be  a  matter 
of  wisdom  or  prudence  to  put  this  business  off  to  some  fut- 
ure day,  at  a  great  distance  ?  I  must  say,  that  I  wish  this 
meeting  might  be  as  soon  and  as  private  as  possible,  that  no 
evil  angels  might  have  any  knowledge  of  it,  who  would  be 
glad  of  an  opportunity  to  throw  in  the  firebrands  of  dissen- 
sion. 

If  this  meeting  could  be  effected  as  proposed,  I  doubt  not 
but  a  union  would  take  place  so  far  as  is  necessary.  That 
peace  which  consists  in  union  of  mind  and  agreement  in 
judgment,  in  every  point,  is  rather  to  be  wished  than  hoped 
for,  in  this  imperfect  state. 

There  are  more  persons  that  are  now  laboring  with  all  the 
insidious  arts  which  they  can  muster  up,  for  the  ruin  of  tire 
Church  of  England,  than  you  can  conceive.  All  the  Infidels 
and  Dissenters  in  England  and  these  States  are  our  most 
mortal  enemies.  However  they  disagree  in  sentiment,  they 
unite  for  our  destruction.  And  you  will  soon  find  they  are 
engaged  as  much  to  divide  as  you  are  to  unite  us. 

These  enemies  have  always  opposed  the  scheme  of  the 
Bishops  of  America.  It  was  by  their  machinations  that 
Bishop  Seabury  failed  in  obtaining  his  desire.  These  ene- 
mies supposed,  when  he  had  applied  and  was  refused,  there 
was  an  end  to  the  Church  in  this  country.  But  when  they 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  307 

found  he  had  obtained  the  favor  of  the  old  Scotch  Bishops, 
and  had  received  the  Apostolical  power,  they  started  and 
cried  out,  What  shall  we  do  now  ?  for  the  Americans  will 
have  bishops,  and  we  cannot  prevent  it.  An  expedient  was 
soon  found.  We  are  resolved  what  to  do.  Let  there  be  an 
act  of  Parliament  granting  liberty  to  the  Bishops  of  Eng- 
land to  consecrate  Bishops  for  America,  and  then  set  up  a 
huge  cry,  that  Bishop  Seabury  is  a  Non-juror.  By  this 
means  we  shall  divide  the  Church  and  they  themselves  will 
demolish  it. 

Shall  we  be  made  tools  by  these  designing  men,  to  do  that 
which  they  cannot  do  without  our  help  ?  The  Church  has 
always  received  her  wounds  from  her  own  sons,  who  sup- 
pose that  other  men  are  as  honest  as  themselves.  When 
our  enemies  cry  up  moderation,  they  mean  nothing  more  or 
less  than  that  we  should  renounce  our  own  principles  and 
embrace  theirs.  When  all  is  considered,  said,  and  done 
upon  the  subject,  we  shall  find  that  the  Church  of  England 
is  the  best  model  we  can  find,  as  it  is  regulated  so  exactly 
according  to  the  Scriptures,  by  which  the  order  of  the  first 
Church  was  fixed. 

Theodosius,  though  a  great  patron  of  the  Church,  by  as- 
suming to  himself  the  power  of  erecting  new  models  in  the 
government  of  it,  thereby  destroyed  the  being  and  constitu- 
tion of  a  Christian  Church ;  for  if  it  rests  upon  Divine 
right  derived  from  our  Saviour  and  his  Apostles,  it  is  then 
in  no  man's  power  to  alter  it ;  if  it  does  not,  it  is  no  Chris- 
tian Church,  for  there  can  be  no  such  thing  unless  it  came 
from  Heaven.  My  kingdom  is  not  of  this  world,  says  our 
Saviour.  If  the  religion  we  profess,  the  officers  to  adminis- 
ter, and  the  ordinances  are  not  all  divine,  it  is  all  a  mere  de- 
lusion at  the  best.  These  points  are  so  clear  in  Revelation, 
that  we  must  hold  them  or  renounce  all  Revelation  itself. 

The  Church  in  this  State  would  be  pleased  to  have  the 
old  forms  altered  as  little  as  may  be ;  but  for  the  sake  of  a 
union  they  will  comply  as  far  as  they  possibly  can.  And  I 
do  not  see  how  a  union  can  be  more  advantageous  to  us  than 


308  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

it  will  be  to  you.  If  it  is  reciprocal,  both  ought  to  give 
way,  and  not  to  be  too  rigid.  And  I  trust  this  will  be  the 
result,  when  matters  are  maturely  considered. 

I  am,  with  every  sentiment  of  esteem,  regard,  and  friend- 
ship, Right  Rev.  Sir,  your  most  obedient,  humble  Servant, 

JEKEMIAH  LEAMING. 

BISHOP  WHITE. 

Bishop  White  was  not  disposed  to  turn  a  deaf  ear 
to  these  importunities,  but  he  seems  to  have  been  so 
hampered  by  his  association  with  Bishop  Provoost 
and  by  his  implied  obligations  to  the  English  prelates 
that  he  was  reluctant  to  take  any  decisive  steps  or  to 
commit  himself  in  any  way,  lest  his  action  might  be 
misunderstood  or  misconstrued.  If  he  was  ready  for 
a  private  interview  with  the  Bishop  of  Connecticut, 
he  was  not  ready  for  it  independently  of  the  wishes 
and  presence  of  his  less  amiable  brother.  He  had 
evinced  a  like  fear  of  independent  action,  when,  be- 
fore going  to  England,  he  postponed  asking  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Pilmore  to  preach  in  his  churches,  —  though,  as 
he  wrote  to  a  friend,1  "  I  cannot  say  I  have  any 
doubt  of  the  validity  of  Bishop  Seabury's  consecra- 
tion; but  I  thought  it  might  be  inconsistent  with 
the  measures  we  are  taking,  to  be  instrumental  in 
the  settling  of  clergymen  among  us,  who  come  to  us 
under  obligations  which  may  perhaps  be  considered 
as  restricting  them  from  joining  in  the  said  measures ; 
and  although  I  knew  Mr.  Pilmore  did  not  construe 
his  engagements  in  such  a  sense,  yet  I  thought  it  my 
duty  to  found  my  conduct  on  the  general  state  of 
the  question  and  not  on  the  construction  of  any 
particular  gentleman."  The  congratulations  which 

1  MS.  letter  to  Rev.  A.  Beach,  May  6,  1786. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  309 

poured  in  upon  him  from  every  quarter  that  he  had 
returned  with  the  accomplishment  of  his  object  were 
not  without  expressions  of  a  hearty  desire  that  the 
three  bishops  now  in  this  country  would  unite  in  con- 
secrating a  fourth,  and  save  Virginia,  for  instance, 
the  expense  of  sending  Dr.  Griffith  to  England. 

One  thing  in  which  Bishop  White  was  interested 
had  failed  to  meet  his  expectations,  and  that  was  the 
sale  of  the  "  proposed  "  Prayer  Books,  which  were 
forwarded,  soon  after  they  were  printed,  in  parcels  to 
different  States  and  publicly  advertised.  Dr.  Grif- 
fith had  a  poor  account  to  render  of  the  disposal  of 
them  in  Virginia,  and  Mr.  Parker,  of  Boston, .  was 
equally  discouraging  in  his  report.  "  What  the  prob- 
ability is,"  said  he,  "  of  a  further  sale  will  depend 
very  much  upon  the  future  movements  of  the  Church 
in  this  State.  Should  a  union  take  place  between 
the  Southern  and  Northern  States  upon  the  plan  of 
these  alterations,  no  doubt  they  will  meet  a  quick 
sale  here ;  but  as  they  are  not  yet  adopted,  even  by 
some  of  the  States  represented  in  the  convention 
which  proposed  them,  I  cannot  promise  that  they 
will  be  in  demand  here.  I  cannot  myself  consent  to 
any  further  alterations  till  a  uniform  Liturgy  is 
agreed  upon  by  the  whole  Church  in  these  States, 
and  to  effect  this  I  shall  be  willing  to  give  up  every- 
thing but  the  essential  doctrines  of  our  Church,  and 
to  adopt  anything  not  repugnant  thereto.  But  I 
fear  from  the  opposite  dispositions  of  Connecticut 
and  the  Southern  States  this  will  not  be  effected, 
though  I  cannot  see  why,  upon  the  supposition  of 
a  different  ecclesiastical  form  of  government,  the 
bishops  of  the  several  States  may  not  agree  on  one 


310  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

common  Liturgy,  and  a  uniformity  of  worship  be  pre- 
served, if  not  of  discipline." 

Mr.  Parker  had  adopted  the  Psalms  as  set  forth  in 
the  new  Prayer  Book,  and  the  Psalter  was  reprinted 
for  use  in  his  church ;  but  in  Connecticut  there  was 
a  steady  and  universal  adherence  to  the  old  English 
Liturgy  except  as  to  the  political  parts.  "  Our  peo- 
ple," wrote  Learning  to  Mr.  Beach,  of  New  Jersey, 
"  esteem  it  next  to  inspiration,  if  not  actually  such." 

The  suggestion  of  consecrating  a  bishop  for  Massa- 
chusetts had  been  several  times  made,  and  Mr.  Par- 
ker was  fixed  upon  by  many  as  the  most  proper  per- 
son to  fill  the  high  office.  It  was  thought  this  step 
would  be  the  connecting  link  between  the  separated 
churches,  and  even  Bishop  White,  as  early  as  July 
5,  1787,  wrote  to  him :  "I  wish  most  sincerely  that 
Massachusetts  would  unite  with  us,  and  choose  a  per- 
son for  consecration,  not  merely  as  it  would  tend  to 
cement  the  Church  throughout  the  whole  continent, 
but  because  I  think  it  would  add  to  the  wisdom  of 
our  determination  whenever  a  general  convention 
shall  be  held  for  the  final  settlement  of  our  ecclesias- 
tical system." 

There  is  no  intimation  in  this  statement  that  he  was 
prepared  to  join  with  Bishop  Seabury  in  the  act  of 
consecration,  if  his  brother  of  New  York  would  con- 
sent. Rather  is  it  to  be  inferred  that  he  would  ex- 
pect Mr.  Parker  to  cross  the  ocean  and  complete  the 
number  of  three  bishops  in  the  English  line,  which 
had  been  indicated  to  be  desirable  and  canonical. 
But  this  plan  was  not  acceptable  to  the  party  most 
interested.  "  Nothing,"  said  Mr.  Parker,  in  reply, 
"  will  be  determined  in  this  State  respecting  a  bishop 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  311 

till  we  see  how  matters  are  settled  between  you  and 
the  Bishop  of  Connecticut.  We  are  but  six  clergy- 
men in  the  whole  State  (exclusive  of  Mr.  Bowen)  and 
are  divided  in  our  sentiments  respecting  the  expedi- 
ency of  obtaining  a  bishop.  Two  seem  to  adhere  to 
Connecticut,  two  to  your  States,  and  the  other  two 
will  join  either  party  that  will  bid  fairest  to  cement  the 
whole.  Should  the  case  happen  that  a  person  should 
be  chosen  for  consecration  for  this  State,  will  it  be 
necessary  for  him  to  go  to  England  to  obtain  it,  or 
can  two  bishops  confer  it  authentically ;  or  is  Dr. 
Griffith  on  his  way  to  England,  or  will  the  Southern 
Bishops  unite  with  Bishop  Seabury  in  this  act?  If 
this  last  question  is  premature  or  impertinent,  I  beg 
pardon,  and  request  not  an  answer  to  it.  The  reason 
of  my  proposing  these  questions  is,  that  the  answers 
may  operate  very  considerably  in  the  determinations 
of  the  clergy  here." 

The  effort  was  still  pursued  to  bring  the  bishops 
together  for  a  private  conference.  The  indefatigable 
Learning  sought  the  interposition  and  aid  of  his  ac- 
complished parishioner,  Dr.  William  Samuel  Johnson, 
a  delegate  from  Connecticut  to  the  convention  which 
was  then  in  session  at  Philadelphia  to  frame  the  Fed- 
eral Constitution.  The  following  letter  is  a  proof  of 
his  earnestness,  and  of  his  belief  in  the  good  results 
which  must  flow  from  a  private  interview :  — 

STRATFORD,  July  30,  1787. 

I  am  so  anxious,  my  dear  and  Rev.  Sir,  for  the  prosperity 
of  the  Church,  that  I  cannot  do  less  than  acknowledge  im- 
mediately the  receipt  of  your  favor  by  Dr.  Johnson,  who 
informs  me  that  your  sentiments  are  the  same  with  ours  in 
respect  of  the  union. 


312  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

If  you,  Bishop  Provoost,  and  Bishop  Seabury  could  be 
brought  together,  at  the  meeting  of  the  gentlemen  who  have 
the  care  of  the  fund  for  Clergymen's  widows,  all  matters 
might  be  adjusted.  And  whatever  may  be  agreed  upon  by 
you  three,  each  Bishop  may  bring  his  own  Clergy  to  acqui- 
esce in  it ;  and  by  that  means  matters  would  be  fixed  upon 
a  permanent  basis. 

You  are  the  only  person  who  can  prepare  the  way  to  effect 
this  scheme.  And  nothing  is  wanted  to  do  it,  but  only  to 
bring  Bishop  Provoost  to  adopt  it.  And  I  cannot  think  he 
would  hesitate  a  moment,  if  he  knew  the  sentiments  of  his 
own  Clergy  in  that  respect  as  fully  as  I  do.  They  all,  to  a 
man,  would  be  overjoyed  to  find  such  a  plan  taking  place. 
There  is  no  one  thing  he  can  possibly  do,  that  would  raise 
his  character  so  high  among  his  Clergy,  as  this  will.  And 
there  can  be  no  risk  in  undertaking  the  affair.  You  would 
do  essential  service  to  the  Church  in  general,  and  Bishop 
Provoost  in  particular,  provided  you  can  effect  this  business, 
and  convince  him  of  the  wisdom  he  will  manifest  in  taking 
such  a  step  now  as  will  fix  the  willing  obedience  of  his  Clergy 
to  him  all  his  life  after.  The  act  at  his  first  setting  out,  that 
pleases  and  strikes  the  attention,  will  be  of  more  advantage 
to  him  than  he  can  imagine. 

When  you  have  persuaded  Bishop  Provoost  to  acquiesce 
in  the  measure  of  having  a  private  conference  with  you  and 
Bishop  Seabury,  upon  the  subject  of  a  union,  be  so  good  as 
to  write  to  Bishop  Seabury  and  invite  him  to  meet  you,  and 
I  doubt  not  he  will  attend.  As  he  first  proposed  it,  will  it 
not  be  proper  to^acquaint  him  you  are  now  agreed  to  have 
such  a  meeting,  which,  in  my  opinion,  is  the  only  method  by 
which  the  end  desired  can  be  effected  ? 

One  thing  further,  provided  you  should  bring  about  a 
union,  which  I  doubt  not  will  be  the  event,  if  you  are  brought 
together,  it  will  save  Dr.  Griffith  the  trouble  and  expense  of 
going  to  England,  for  he  can  be  canonically  consecrated 
here. 

I  have  written  now  lest  if  I  put  it  off  till  Dr.  Johnson's 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  313 

return,  you  may  not  have  time  to  prepare  matters  before  the 
meeting ;  and  it  appears  to  me  there  ought  not  to  be  any  de- 
lay in  this  affair.  I  hope  you  will  not  esteem  me  over  offi- 
cious in  this  business  ;  if  you  do,  my  apology  is  this ;  I 
have  been  forty  years  in  the  service  of  the  Church,  and  I 
believe  I  am  the  oldest  Clergyman  in  America,  and  I  am 
very  desirous  to  see  it  complete  before  I  die. 

God  bless  your  labors  for  the  converting  of  sinners  and 
the  building  up  of  saints.  Thus  prays,  Right  Rev.  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient,  humble  Servant, 

JEREMIAH  LEAMING. 
BISHOP  WHITE. 

An  extract  from  a  letter  of  Bishop  White  to  another 
gentleman  will  serve  as  an  answer  to  Mr.  Learning. 
"  I  will  be  very  explicit  with  you/'  said  he,  writing  to 
Mr.  Parker,  August  6,  1787,  "  on  the  questions  you 
put  in  regard  to  an  union  with  Bishop  Seabury,  and 
the  consecration  of  Dr.  Griffith.  On  the  one  hand, 
considering  it  was  presumed  a  third  was  to  go  over  to 
England,  that  the  institutions  of  the  Church  of  that 
country  require  three  to  join  in  the  consecration,  and 
that  the  political  situation  of  the  English  prelates  pre- 
vents their  official  knowledge  of  Dr.  Seabury  as  a 
Bishop,  I  am  apprehensive  it  may  seem  a  breach  of 
faith  towards  them,  if  not  intended  deception  in  us, 
were  we  to  consecrate  without  the  actual  number  of 
three,  all  under  the  English  succession  :  although  it 
would  not  be  inconsistent  with  this  idea,  that  another 
gentleman,  under  a  different  succession,  should  be 
joined  with  us.  On  the  other  hand,  I  am  most  sin- 
cerely desirous  of  seeing  our  Church  throughout  these 
States  united  in  one  Ecclesiastical  Legislature  ;  and  I 
think  that  any  difficulties  which  have  hitherto  seemed 
in  the  way  might  be  removed  by  mutual  forbearance. 


314  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

If  there  are  any  further  difficulties  than  those  I  al- 
lude to  of  difference  in  opinion,  they  do  not  exist  with 
me ;  and  I  shall  be  ready  to  do  what  lies  in  my  power 
to  bring  all  to  an  agreement. 

"  As  to  Dr.  Griffith,  he  is  ready  to  go  to  England  as 
soon  as  he  shall  be  provided  with  money  for  the  pur- 
pose ;  and  it  was  contrary  to  his  opinion  the  writing 
to  Bishop  Provoost  and  to  me,  requesting  us  or  either 
of  us  to  consecrate  him.  My  answer  was  to  this  pur- 
port :  that  our  Convention,  by  adopting  the  English 
Book  of  Ordination  and  Consecration,  had  made  it 
necessary  for  us  to  adhere  to  the  canonical  number, 
—  that  besides  this,  I  should  be  very  cautious  of  break- 
ing down  such  a  bar  against  consecrations  on  surrep- 
titious elections,  the  evil  against  which  the  canonical 
number  was  intended,  —  and  that  it  would  be  indeli- 
cate to  the  English  bishops.  I  find  from  Bishop  Pro- 
voost that  he  wrote  a  similar  answer.  There  the  mat- 
ter rests  for  the  present.  I  remain  in  hopes  that  they 
will  now  take  effectual  measures  for  raising  the  nec- 
essary supplies." 

While  these  efforts  toward  reconciliation  and  union 
were  prosecuted  by  individual  clergymen,  Bishop  Sea- 
bury  was  caring  for  his  work  in  Connecticut,  and  stir- 
ring up  the  people  wherever  he  went.  His  visitations 
could  not  be  rapid,  —  travelling  as  he  did  on  horse- 
back, or  in  a  chaise  or  sulky,  over  rough  and  hilly 
roads,  —  but  they  were  circuitous  and  extensive,  and 
occupied  much  of  his  time.  The  parish  at  New  Lon- 
don had  claims  to  his  services  as  rector,  and  the 
church,  the  erection  of  which  he  found  entered  upon 
when  he  returned  to  this  country,  was  now,  after 
many  hindrances,  completed  and  ready  for  consecra- 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  315 

tion ;  he  convoked  his  clergy  to  be  present,  and  the 
ceremonies,  which  were  of  an  imposing  character,  took 
place  September  20,  1787.  It  was  the  second  church 
consecrated  by  him  in  Connecticut,  and  some  idea  of 
the  interest  excited  by  the  occasion,  and  of  Episcopal 
labor  as  well,  may  be  gathered  from  the  familiar  and 
rather  humorous  letters  written  by  Ashbel  Baldwin  to 
his  friend,  the  Eev.  Tillotson  Bronson,  then  a  deacon 
officiating  in  Strafford,  Yt.,  and  looking  back  with 
eager  longings  to  the  better  fields  of  his  native  State. 
The  "  tour  "  into  Litchfield  County  spoken  of  in  the 
ensuing  extract  from  one  of  these  letters,1  dated  No- 
vember 15,  1787,  was  undertaken  after  the  consecra- 
tion of  the  church  in  New  London. 

Bishop  Seabury  has  not  been  in  Vermont ;  therefore  't  is 
no  wonder  if  you  have  not  heard  of  him  there ;  so  much 
for  a  duplicate  of  my  answer  to  your  second  letter.  I  men- 
tioned in  the  inclosed  of  the  14th  instant,  of  our  convening 
at  New  London.  The  Clergy  were  not  in  general  present. 
The  Bishop  preached  the  consecration  sermon,  and  was 
universally  applauded  :  he  has  a  most  excellent  talent  at 
sermonizing.  No  ordinations.  Brother  Ogden,  from  Ports- 
mouth, applied  for  Priest's  orders,  but  was  rejected.  Tom- 
linson  was  not  there :  had  he  been  there,  I  think  he  would 
have  met  with  an  opposition.  Todd  expects  to  be  conse- 
crated [ordained]  in  June.  Bishop  Seabury  has  at  last 
made  a  tour  into  our  quarter.  And  was  unhappy  that  you 
had  moved.  An  acquaintance  of  his  wrote  to  have  him 
send  a  Mathematical  genius  to  Elizabeth  Town  (New  Jer- 
sey), to  take  charge  of  the  Church  in  that  place  and  an 
Academy  lately  established  there.  He  had  mentioned  you 
to  them  with  high  expectations  of  its  being  agreeable  to  you 
and  them.  However,  I  hope  all  is  for  the  best,  and  that 

1  MS.  Letters. 


316  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

you  may  make  a  figure  where  you  are.  I  mentioned  in  my 
last  that  you  must  provide  me  a  place  of  refuge  —  I  am  in 
earnest.  I  expect  (God  willing)  to  wait  on  Bishop  Seabury 
into  your  State  next  summer.  He  has  thoughts  of  fixing 
himself  there,  if  he  should  find  his  lands  to  his  mind ;  this 
must  be  Inter  nos.  His  visit  among  us  was  attended  with 
great  applause  to  himself  and  much  pleasure  to  the  church 
people.  At  Simsbury  confirmation  was  administered  to 
about  two  hundred  persons ;  Harwinton,  40 ;  Cambridge,  56  ; 
Northbury,  103  ;  Litchfield,  165.  An  amazing  throng  of 
people  attended  with  us ;  there  was  supposed  to  be  fifteen 
hundred  people  present.  His  subject  was  the  doctrine  of 
atonement,  on  which  his  observations  were  so  striking  that 
it  was  almost  impossible  to  restrain  the  audience  from  loud 
shouts  of  approbation.  Whilst  with  me  he  was  visited  by 
the  most  respectable  people  in  town.  I  escorted  him  to 
Goshen,  Salisbury,  and  Sharon,  where  we  parted,  after  hav- 
ing spent  a  fortnight  in  the  most  agreeable  manner  that  I 
ever  was  acquainted  with.  He  is  sensible  and  agreeable, 
and  if  the  Church  was  not  at  the  bottom  of  the  hill  in  point 
of  zeal,  I  think  they  have  the  highest  prospect  of  rising 
triumphant  with  such  a  Head.  Ives  was  with  him,  and  has 
concluded  to  spend  the  winter  at  New  London,  and,  I  be- 
lieve, his  days  at  Cheshire.  Belden  has  visited  me,  and  is 
yet  undetermined.  Young  Marsh  has  been  home.  He  has 
an  appointment  of  Tutor  in  Cokesbury  College,  a  large  and 
respectable  seminary  lately  founded  in  Maryland ;  inclosed 
is  a  map  of  the  building ;  he  is  much  improved,  and  I  think 
bids  fair  for  a  shining  character.  He  wishes  to  be  remem- 
bered to  you. 

The  public  mind  was  greatly  agitated  at  this  pe- 
riod about  the  adoption  of  the  new  Federal  Constitu- 
tion. The  convention  in  Philadelphia  had  finished 
its  work  and  sent  it  to  the  old  thirteen  States  for  ap- 
proval and  ratification.  The  instrument,  as  it  came 
from  the  hands  of  its  framers,  was  not  considered  by 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  317 

any  one  to  be  perfect  in  theory,  but  it  was  the  best 
that  could  be  made  under  the  circumstances  to  estab- 
lish a  system  of  national  government.  Political  feel- 
ing ran  high,  and  when  the  people  of  Connecticut 
came  to  choose  delegates  to  the  State  convention, 
which  was  to  ratify  or  reject  the  Constitution,  they 
were  much  divided,  and  it  was  impossible  to  foretell 
the  issue.  Mr.  Baldwin,  in  his  next  letter  to  his 
clerical  friend  in  Vermont,  written  the  same  month, 
gave  a  characteristic  description  of  the  popular  agita- 
tion, and  then  passed  to  ecclesiastical  matters. 

The  new  Constitution  is  out,  the  Egg-shell  is  broke  —  but 
't  is  impossible  as  yet  to  determine  how  it  is  relished  —  yes- 
terday members  for  a  State  Convention  were  appointed.  It 
was  a  day  "  big  with  the  fate  of  Cato  and  of  Rome."  There 
will  be  powerful  oppositions  to  it  in  Connecticut.  But  the 
struggles  against  it  in  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania  are  vio- 
lent. The  Southern  Papers  are  red  hot ;  nothing  is  said  on 
either  side  but  "  Firebrands,  Arrows  and  death."  I  am 
alarmed  at  the  consequence  of  its  being  either  received  or 
rejected,  the  majority  will  not  be  sufficiently  large  on  either 
side  for  a  subject  of  such  vast  consequence.  The  members 
of  State  Convention  in  Litchfield  are  avowedly  in  favor  of 
it.  The  Yeas  and  Nays  in  several  adjacent  towns  were 
taken,  and  a  great  majority  against  it,  and  members  ap- 
pointed accordingly ;  in  short  we  are  much  divided ;  anar- 
chy, I  am  afraid,  is  approaching.  But  why  should  we  be 
anxiously  troubled  —  "  Whatever  is  is  right."  What  would 
it  avail  us  if  we  knew  what  our  situation  would  be ;  it  could 
neither  alleviate  nor  mitigate  our  sufferings.  The  most  in- 
fluential characters  in  New  York  are  against  the  Constitu- 
tion. 

In  number  2  I  mentioned  the  present  situation  of  Ives. 
The  Blakeslees  are  still  at  Derby.  I  can  now  and  then  hear 
of  them  prowling  at  Northbury  and  its  vicinity.  Prindle 


318  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

continues  peaceably  in  his  own  country.  Depend  not  on 
rumors  ;  the  Clergy  in  Connecticut  are  well  pleased  with 
their  Bishop,  and  will  run  the  risk  of  a  disunion  with  the 
Southern  gentry,  rather  than  forsake  him,  if  he  will  stay 
with  us.  We  hope,  however,  better  things  than  that.  A 
correspondence  is  now  open  on  the  subject,  between  Sea- 
bury,  Provoost,  and  White,  and  we  expect  the  issue  will  be 
a  friendly  coalition  in  Episcopal  consecration,  if  not  in 
Church  government.  Convocation  agreed  there  might  a 
Christian  agreement  take  place  so  far  as  to  establish  the 
Church  in  America,  if  they  could  not  agree  on  the  particu- 
lar mode  of  exercising  the  right  of  that  Church.  I  am 
happy  to  find  the  assembly  of  your  State  acting  upon  so  lib- 
eral a  plan  respecting  the  Church  Lands  ;  for  I  think  it  will 
be  productive  of  most  salutary  consequences  to  you.  We 
shall  all  swarm  from  Connecticut  unless  the  political  wheel 
rolls  in  a  different  way  from  the  present.  I  know  of  no  asy- 
lum but  Vermont.  May  we  all  once  more  meet  together  in 
that  romantic  country  and  be  able  to  behold  our  flocks  upon 
a  thousand  hills.  To-morrow  is  Thanksgiving  Day :  re- 
member St.  Pumpkin's,  and  give  one  sociable  glass  for  us. 
I  perform  divine  service  at  Harwinton.  Their  Church  is  al- 
most inclosed.  I  forgot  when  speaking  of  Convocation  to 
say  anything  of  their  Church  in  New  London ;  't  is  a  pretty 
one,  I  think  the  neatest  building  in  the  State  :  elegantly  fin- 
ished. The  consecration  service  was  amazingly  grand.  The 
Bishop  had  on  his  royal  attire.  The  Crown  and  Mitre  were 
refulgent.  The  reading  Psalms  were  beautifully  chanted. 
The  most  of  the  Clergy  present  were  clothed  in  their  Robes, 
and  the  whole  day  was  pleasing.  Good  Night. 

This  was  the  first  occasion  on  which  Bishop  Sea- 
bury  wore  the  mitre  ;  at  least  there  has  been  found 
no  positive  proof  that  he  appeared  with  it  prior  to 
the  consecration  of  the  church  in  New  London.  It 
has,  indeed,  been  stated  on  the  authority  of  one  who 
was  present  as  a  spectator,  that  it  was  upon  the  head 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  319 

of  the  bishop  when  he  held  his  first  ordination  in 
Middle  town.  "  In  1785,  at  the  first  ordination  in 
this  country,"  said  the  late  Rev.  Isaac  Jones,  of  Litch- 
field,  standing  before  it  in  the  library  of  Trinity  Col- 
lege, Hartford,  where  it  is  now  deposited,  "  I  saw 
him  wearing  his  scarlet  hood  and  that  mitre,  and 
though  I  was  then  a  dissenter,  his  stately  figure  and 
solemn  manner  impressed  me  very  much."  1  Prob- 
ably the  memory  of  this  good  man  in  his  old  age 
failed  him  and  he  mistook  the  occasion.  For  Bishop 
Seabury  "  did  not  use  the  mitre  at  first,  nor  did  he 
bring  one  with  him  when  he  came  home  after  his 
consecration  ;  but  when  he  found  many  of  the  non- 
Episcopal  ministers  about  him  disposed  to  adopt  the 
title  of  bishop,  in  derision  of  his  claims,  he  adopted  a 
mitre  as  a  badge  of  office  which  they  would  hardly 
be  disposed  to  imitate." 2  It  does  not  appear  to  have 
been  used  by  him  in  his  ordinary  visitations,  but 
only  on  a  few  great  occasions  when  imposing  ceremo- 
nies took  place. 

1  Coxe's  Christian  Ballads,  p.  216. 

2  Hallam's  Annals  of  St.  James's  Church,  New  London,  p.  73. 


320  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 


CHAPTER  XVIIL 

CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  MR.  PARKER,  AND  VISIT  TO  BOSTON;  CHARITY 
SERMON,  AND  ORDINATIONS ;  STAY  IN  THE  CITY,  AND  CALL  UPON 
DR.  BYLES;  LETTER  OF  LEAMING,  AND  CONVOCATION  AT  NORTH 
HAVEN. 

A.    D.    1788. 

THE  tenacity  with  which  Bishop  Seabury  adhered 
to  the  "good  old  Book  of  Common  Prayer"  led  him 
to  wholly  distrust  the  unauthorized  changes  which 
were  made  and  set  forth  at  Philadelphia.  He  had 
been  invited  by  Mr.  Parker  to  pass  the  Easter  festival 
in  Boston  and  to  preacb  the  annual  sermon  before 
the  Episcopal  Charitable  Society;  but  learning  that 
there  was  some  irregularity  in  the  mode  of  con- 
ducting the  service  in  Mr.  Parker's  church,  especially 
in  using  a  portion  of  "  The  Proposed  Book/'  he  ex- 
pressed his  unwillingness  to  accept  the  invitation,  as 
his  presence  at  such  a  crisis  might  be  construed  into 
countenancing  improper  departures  from  the  old  Lit- 
urgy. The  bishop  does  not  appear  to  have  known 
the  extent  of  these  departures,  but  he  could  not  help 
thinking  that  if  uniformity  among  the  churches  was 
hereafter  to  be  attained,  it  was  unwise  for  individual 
parishes  to  adopt  changes  which  might  tend  to  em- 
barrass so  good  a  work.  His  first  letter  to  Mr.  Parker 
has  not  been  preserved,  but  the  answer  shows  the 
character  of  the  contents  and  is  withal  a  most  valua- 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  321 

ble  contribution  to  the  ecclesiastical  history  of  that 
period.  The  stateliness  of  its  tone  and  a  lack  of  the 
usual  warmth  of  expression  looked  like  a  breach 
between  the  Bishop  of  Connecticut  and  the  leading 
clergyman  in  Massachusetts. 

BOSTON,  January  28,  1788. 

RT.  REV'D  SIR,  —  Your  favor  of  the  15th  did  not  reach 
me  till  the  evening  of  the  21st  instant,  and  the  departure  of 
the  Post  the  next  morning  prevented  my  answering  it  the 
last  week. 

I  am  very  sorry  to  find  that  you  have  any  reluctance  to 
pass  the  festival  of  Easter  at  Boston,  on  account  of  any  ir- 
regular or  unprecedented  conduct  in  our  Church.  I  know 
not  what  accounts  may  have  come  to  your  ears  respecting 
the  great  alterations  we  have  made  in  the  Liturgy  of  the 
Church.  I  flatter  myself  you  have  heard  more  than  is  really 
true.  I  had  the  honor  of  transmitting  to  you,  Sir,  a  copy 
of  these  alterations,  adopted  by  a  Convention  held  in  this 
State,  Sept.  '85  :  no  others  have  been  since  added,  except  the 
Psalms.  The  gentlemen  of  the  Charitable  Society  would 
think  themselves  honored  with  your  company  at  their  annual 
festival ;  but  I  cannot  feel  myself  at  liberty  to  promise  a 
recession  from  our  present  mode  of  carrying  on  the  service, 
as  I  apprehend  it  would  be  attended  with  great  convulsions 
in  our  Church.  And  if  you  will  indulge  me  in  the  state- 
ment of  a  few  facts  relating  to  those  alterations  we  have 
really  made,  and  the  grounds  upon  which  they  were  adopted, 
you  will  be  the  better  able  to  judge  how  far  our  conduct  has 
been  reprehensible. 

In  the  year  1T85,  I  think  in  the  month  of  June  or  July, 
there  being  then  but  four  Clergymen  of  the  Episcopal  Church 
in  the  three  States  of  Rhode  Island,  Massachusetts,  and  New 
Hampshire,  and  there  being  in  those  States  eighteen  or 
twenty  Churches,  three  of  the  Clergymen  of  Massachusetts 
thought  it  advisable  to  invite  a  Convention  of  all  the 
Churches  to  consult  upon  some  plan  for  maintaining  unif orm- 
21 


322  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

ity  in  Divine  Worship,  and  adopting  such  other  measures  as 
might  tend  to  the  union  and  prosperity  of  the  Episcopal 
Church.  There  being  but  four  Clergymen,  and  so  many 
Churches  without,  it  was  absolutely  necessary  to  call  in  the 
Wardens  and  delegates  from  those  Churches  who  had  no 
Clergymen.  This  Convention  was  proposed  to  be  held  on 
Sept.  7,  1785.  In  the  mean  time,  being  informed  that  the 
Bishop  of  Connecticut  proposed  to  meet  his  Clergy  in  Con- 
vocation, on  August  3,  in  that  year,  I  was  requested  by  my 
brethren  in  the  ministry,  and  the  wardens  and  vestry,  to 
attend  that  meeting,  in  order  to  learn  what  proceedings  that 
body  would  take,  that  the  proposed  Convention  in  this 
State  might  be  able  to  act  in  unison  with  them.  The  atten- 
tion and  politeness  I  received  from  yourself,  Sir,  and  the 
Clergy  of  your  diocese,  demand  my  grateful  acknowledg- 
ments. I  had  the  honor  of  a  seat  in  the  first  Convention 
ever  held  in  America.  Upon  discussing  the  subject  of  the 
expediency  of  some  alterations  in  the  Liturgy  of  the  Church, 
it  was  proposed  and  agreed  to,  to  choose  a  committee  to 
attend  the  Bishop,  to  propose  such  alterations  as  should  be 
thought  necessary,  and  to  report  them  to  the  next  meeting 
of  the  Convocation.  Having  the  honor  of  being  named  on 
that  committee,  in  conjunction  with  Rev.  Messrs.  Jarvis  and 
Bowden,  you  will  recollect,  Sir,  that  we  spent  Friday  and 
Saturday  in  that  week  upon  this  subject,  and  that  most,  if 
not  all  the  proposed  alterations  were  such  as  we  were  under 
obligations  to  you  for,  or  such  as  you  readily  agreed  to. 
These  proposed  alterations  were  to  be  reported  to  the  next 
meeting  of  your  Convocation,  and,  by  your  express  desire,  to 
the  Convention  that  was  to  meet  in  this  town  the  following 
month,  and  were,  I  think,  transmitted  by  you  to  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Smith,  of  Maryland,  to  be  communicated  to  the  Conven- 
tion to  be  held  at  Philadelphia,  in  the  month  of  October. 
The  substitutes  for  the  State  prayers  were  to  be  immediately 
recommended  to  the  Churches  of  Connecticut ;  and  your 
injunction  was  received  and  adopted,  with  the  alteration  of 
one  single  word  by  our  Convention.  The  other  proposed 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  323 

alterations  were  also  agreed  to,  and  were  to  be  sent  to 
all  the  Churches  in  those  States  for  their  ratification.  In 
our  peculiar  situation,  without  a  Bishop,  and  most  of  our 
Churches  without  a  Clergyman,  what  other  mode  could  we 
devise  ?  Till  then  I  had  not  made,  and  did  not  think  myself 
at  liberty  to  make,  any  alterations,  even  in  the  State  prayers, 
otherwise  than  by  omitting  the  prayers  for  the  King,  etc. 
Give  me  leave,  Rt.  Rev'd  Sir,  to  ask  what  other  mode  we 
could  have  devised,  in  our  peculiar  situation,  without  a 
Bishop,  and  most  of  our  Churches  without  a  Clergyman  ?  As 
we  could  not  proceed  in  the  most  regular  way  of  having  our 
Liturgy  altered  by  a  Bishop,  we  thought  we  had  taken  the 
next  most  regular  step,  that  of  gaining  the  consent  of  a  neigh- 
boring Bishop,  who,  we  were  led  to  suppose,  would  enjoin  the 
same  in  his  Diocese.  We  kept  our  Convention  under  ad- 
journments till  July  following,  in  order  to  see  what  would 
take  effect  in  Connecticut,  and  at  the  southward.  The  Con- 
vention held  in  Philadelphia,  in  October,  went  more  thor- 
oughly into  alterations  than  we  had  proposed,  which  termi- 
nated in  reprinting  the  Prayer  Book.  The  Churches  in 
Connecticut,  taking  the  alarm  at  the  proceedings  of  the 
Philadelphia  Convention,  began  to  think  it  best  not  to  start 
from  the  old  ground;  and,  if  I  am  rightly  informed,  sent 
memorials  to  the  Bishop  in  Convocation,  not  to  accede  to 
any  alterations  in  the  Liturgy,  further  than  the  substitute 
for  the  State  prayers. 

When  our  Convention  met  in  July,  by  adjournment, 
we  found  that  we  were  left  by  our  brethren  in  Connecticut 
—  that  they  thought  it  not  advisable  to  make  any  altera- 
tions. The  Convention  at  the  southward,  though  they  ac- 
ceded to  some  of  our  alterations,  had  gone  much  further, 
and  did  not  adopt  the  substitute  for  the  State  prayers ;  and 
the  Churches  in  this  and  the  neighboring  States  had  readily 
come  into  our  proposed  alterations,  as  they  had  signified  to 
the  Convention,  one  only  excepted:  what  was  there,  in  the 
power  of  the  Convention,  then  left  to  do,  to  preserve  a  uni- 
formity ?  For  my  own  part  I  was  nonplussed ;  we  found  we 


324  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

missed  our  object,  and  the  only  thing  left  to  our  choice  was, 
to  leave  it  to  the  option  of  the  several  Churches  to  adopt 
the  new  alterations,  or  continue  the  old  Liturgy,  as  should 
be  most  agreeable. 

My  Church  chose  the  alterations,  and  on  the  first  Sunday 
in  August,  1786,  they  were  introduced,  and  have  been 
strictly  adhered  to  ever  since.  With  those  alterations  sug- 
gested by  yourself,  and  adopted  by  this  Convention,  it  was 
judged  best  by  some  of  our  Church,  to  take  the  Psalms  as 
selected  by  the  Convention  at  Philadelphia.  The  reasons 
adduced  for  this  procedure  were,  the  great  length  of  the 
morning  service,  which  the  reading  the  Psalms  thus  se- 
lected would  considerably  shorten,  and  that  certain  passages, 
which  were  peculiar  to  the  state  of  the  Jewish  Church,  and 
in  particular  those  called  the  cursing  Psalms,  and  not  so 
well  adapted  to  worship  under  the  Christian  dispensation, 
were  omitted. 

This,  Sir,  being  the  true  state  of  facts,  you  will  be  able  to 
judge  how  far  we  have  acted  irregularly,  and  whether  you 
can  with  propriety  visit  us  under  these' circumstances.  I  am 
not,  for  my  own  part,  so  much  attached  to  our  alterations, 
as  to  be  unwilling  to  part  with  them,  save  in  two  instances  : 
I  mean  the  omission  of  the  Athanasian  Creed,  and  the  fre- 
quent repetition  of  the  Lord's  Prayer.  To  return  to  these  I 
should  feel  a  reluctance ;  but  still  would  be  willing  to  sacri- 
fice my  own  sentiments  to  the  general  good. 

I  am  at  the  same  time  confident  that,  should  I  attempt  it, 
it  would  cause  a  convulsion  in  my  Church,  [such]  as  would 
go  near  to  its  total  destruction.  And  sure  I  am,  that  is  an 
event  you  would  not  wish  to  see  take  place.  But  let  us 
suppose.it  might  be  effected  without  this  risque.  Will  our 
returning  whence  we  have  departed  produce  a  uniformity 
through  these  States  ?  If  this  was  probable,  I  should  most 
surely  advise  it.  You  value  us  in  this  State  at  much  too 
high  a  rate,  by  supposing  that  our  joining  either  side  will 
bring  about  the  desired  uniformity.  The  Church  is  incon- 
siderable here,  compared  with  what  it  is  in  yours  or  the 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  325 

southern  States.  And  would  not  our  returning,  without 
producing  the  intended  end,  discover  an  instability  and 
fondness  for  change,  that  would  be  greatly  prejudicial  to 
the  welfare  of  the  Churches  ?  This  I  will  venture  to  assert, 
that  when  the  several  Bishops  in  America  have  agreed  upon 
a  uniform  Liturgy,  it  will  be  adopted  by  the  Churches  in 
this  State. 

Thus,  Rt.  Rev.  Sir,  I  have  taken  the  liberty  to  lay  before 
you  this  statement  of  facts,  and  the  probable  consequences 
of  our  compliance  with  what  you  wish  ;  and  however  mis- 
taken I  may  be,  I  have  endeavored  to  do  it  with  all  that  re- 
spect due  to  your  character  and  office.  Your  known  good- 
ness and  candor  will  excuse  me  if  my  pen  has  let  anything 
slip  that  is  improper,  for  I  assure  you  it  was  not  intended. 

I  can  only  now  add,  Sir,  that  the  gentlemen  of  the  Chari- 
table Society,  and  particularly  myself,  would  think  ourselves 
honored  with  your  company  at  the  annual  festival,  and  highly 
favored  by  your  preaching  to  them  on  that  day  (and  I  will 
add,  on  the  Sunday  preceding,  if  you  can  make  it  conven- 
ient) ;  but  at  the  same  time  they  cannot  authorize  me  to 
promise  a  recession  from  our  present  mode  of  performing 
the  service,  as  they  are  apprehensive  that  such  a  measure 
would,  especially  at  the  present  time,  when  the  Episcopal 
Church  is  peculiarly  situated,  tend  to  create  divisions  and 
parties  among  ourselves. 

A  committee  of  the  Society  was  chosen  at  the  last  yearly 
meeting,  to  appoint  some  other  gentleman  to  preach,  in  case 
you  should  not  accept  the  invitation.  You  will,  therefore, 
please  to  let  me  know,  as  soon  as  convenient,  the  result  of 
your  determination. 

And  believe  me  to  be,  with  all  possible  respect  and  es- 
teem, Rt.  Rev.  Sir,  your  most  obedient  and  very  humble 
Servant,  S.  PARKER.1 

KT.  REV.  BISHOP  OF  CONNECTICUT. 

Bishop  Seabury  was  not  a  man  to  permit  any  mis- 

1  Perry's  Historical  Notes  and  Documents,  pp.  364-366. 


326  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

apprehension  of  his  motives  to  go  uncorrected. 
Frank  and  independent  as  he  always  was  in  the  ex- 
pression of  his  own  views,  he  was  ever  ready  to  re- 
spect the  honest  independence  of  others,  and  where 
he  could  not  agree  with  them,  he  maintained  his 
Christian  dignity  and  cherished  no  unfriendly  feel- 
ings. In  his  letter-book  is  to  be  found  transcribed  a 
portion  of  the  candid  reply  which  he  sent  to  Mr.  Par- 
ker just  two  weeks  after  the  date  of  the  foregoing 
epistle  :  — 

February  13,  1789. 

....  It  was  not  my  design  to  excite  any  resentment,  or 
create  any  coolness,  and  I  hope  I  have  not  done  so.  Indeed, 
I  have  no  suspicion  of  it  from  any  expression  in  your  letter. 
But  I  could  not  help  observing  that  it  was  written  with 
more  formality  than  you  used  to  write.  Notwithstanding 
the  statement  of  matters  in  it,  I  cannot  help  thinking  you 
have  been  too  hasty  in  adopting  the  alterations  as  you  have 
done  —  that  it  has  rendered  a  union  among  the  Churches 
the  more  difficult,  and  clouded  the  small  prospect  of  uni- 
formity, which  gave  any  encouragement  to  aim  at  it.  That 
some  of  our  Clergy  have  been  too  backward  in  accommodat- 
ing the  service  of  the  Church  to  the  state,  or  rather  the 
temper  of  the  country,  I  will  not  deny ;  I  have  more  than 
once  told  them  so.  But  errors  may  be  committed  through 
haste,  as  well  as  by  delay.  I  am  far  from  ascribing  ill -de- 
signs to  you,  or  to  any  one  who  acted  with  you :  but  you 
must  forgive  me  if  I  repeat  it  —  such  alterations  as  have 
been  made  are  unprecedented  in  the  Episcopal  Church, 
without  the  concurrence  of  your  Bishop.  Forgive  me,  too, 
if  I  say,  I  did  not  flatter  myself  with  having  any  steps 
taken  in  returning  to  the  old  service  for  my  sake.  I  have 
been  too  long  acquainted  with  my  own  unimportance  to  ex- 
pect it.  But  I  did  and  do  wish  to  have  as  great  a  uniform- 
ity as  possible  among  our  Churches  ;  and  I  was  grieved  at  a 
measure  which  I  thought  impeded  so  good  a  work.  I  never 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  327 

thought  there  was  any  heterodoxy  in  the  southern  Prayer 
Book:  but  I  do  think  the  true  doctrine  is  left  too  un- 
guarded, and  that  the  offices  are,  some  of  them,  lowered  to 
such  a  degree,  that  they  will,  in  a  great  measure,  lose  their 
influence. 

The  invitation  to  pass  the  Easter  festival  in  Boston 
was  accepted,  and  Bishop  Seabury  preached  in  Trin- 
ity Church  before  the  Episcopal  Charitable  Society 
at  the  anniversary  meeting,  Easter  Tuesday,  March 
25,  1788.  The  sermon  was  on  "  Charity,"  and  by  re- 
quest of  the  Society  was  printed.  A  brief  extract 
will  give  some  idea  of  its  character  and  of  the  insti- 
tution in  whose  behalf  it  was  delivered  :  — 

However  strong  and  indispensable  the  obligations  of  Chris- 
tian charity  may  be — however  great  the  ability  of  the  rich, 
and  the  liberality  of  their  dispositions  —  no  one  can  relieve 
everybody.  Among  a  multitude  of  objects  the  generous 
mind  will  undergo  some  uneasiness  because  all  cannot  be 
relieved,  or  because  a  particular  one  cannot  be  relieved  to  a 
sufficient  degree.  The  desire,  too,  of  bestowing  what  he  has 
to  give  where  it  may  do  the  most  good,  will  occasion  a  per- 
plexity disagreeable  enough  to  a  tender  heart.  From  hence 
will  appear  the  usefulness  and  propriety  of  charitable  Insti- 
tutions and  Societies.  Their  attention  is  limited  by  the 
nature  and  rules  of  their  institution,  and  only  objects  of 
a  particular  description  can  come  under  their  observation. 
Instead  of  confining  Charity,  this,  in  fact,  renders  it  more 
extensively  and  permanently  useful.  Its  supplies  are  con- 
stant, though  possibly  not  very  large ;  for  the  end  of  Charity 
is  to  relieve,  not  to  enrich.  By  increasing  the  number  of 
these  institutions,  and  varying  the  descriptions  of  persons  to 
be  relieved  by  them,  all  the  poor  who  are  not  provided  for 
by  public  law  may  be  brought  within  the  reach  of  relief. 
The  object,  too,  of  these  Societies  being  limited,  and  their 
ability  increased  by  union,  their  efforts  will  be  more  con- 


328  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

centred,  and,  like  the  rays  of  the  sun  in  a  burning-glass,  the 
more  powerful :  And  that  relief  which  no  individual  could 
give  will  be  easily  and  effectually  obtained  by  the  joint  en- 
ergy of  the  whole. 

The  respectable  Society  before  which  I  have,  this  day,  the 
pleasure  of  preaching,  is  an  eminent  instance  of  the  justness 
of  these  sentiments.  Formed  more  than  sixty  years  ago,  for 
the  benevolent  purpose  of  relieving  the  members  and  bene- 
factors of  the  Society,  and  other  persons  of  the  Episcopal 
Church,  from  the  distresses  of  poverty  and  misfortune,  to 
which,  through  the  various  changes  and  chances  of  this  mor- 
tal life,  we  are  all  continually  exposed,  —  it  has  pleased  God 
so  to  bless  its  pious  efforts  and  proper  conduct,  that  it  has 
been  the  happy  means  of  giving  ample  relief  and  comfort  to 
many  who  had  no  earthly  resource,  and  is  now  enabled  to 
continue  and  to  increase  that  support  to  the  indigent,  which 
was  the  blessed  object  of  its  first  design.  A  design  so  di- 
rectly springing  from  the  true  spirit  of  Christian  benevolence, 
and  conducted  by  that  Charity  whose  greatest  glory  is,  that 
it  seeJceth  not  its  own,  but  the  good  of  others,  could  not  fail 
of  His  blessing  who  openeth  his  hand  and  filleth  all  living 
things  with  plenteousness.  Nor  have  we  any  reason  to  doubt 
he  will  continue  to  bless  and  support  it,  and  direct  its  mem- 
bers by  his  grace  and  Holy  Spirit,  worthily  to  continue  the 
benevolent  work  they  have  hitherto  so  worthily  conducted. 

Societies  like  this,  by  collecting  the  smaller  efforts  of  be- 
nevolent hearts,  and  combining  them  together,  to  be  again 
distributed  for  the  purposes  of  charity,  resemble  mighty 
rivers,  rolling  their  waters,  collected  from  brooks  and  springs, 
to  the  great  reservoir  of  moisture  which  the  Almighty  has 
prepared  for  the  refreshment  of  the  earth.  And  the  worthy 
members  of  this  pious  institution  will  reflect  with  pleasure 
upon  the  singular  goodness  of  God  in  making  them,  without 
distressing  themselves,  the  instruments  of  alleviating  the  dis- 
tresses of  others  —  cooperators  with  him  in  the  great  work  of 
promoting  human  happiness  by  abating  the  pains  of  human 
misery.  May  their  example  inspire,  their  zeal  warm,  and 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  329 

their  prudence  direct  others  to  form  and  conduct  similar 
Societies,  till  every  class  and  denomination  of  distressed 
poor  are,  as  far  as  human  infirmity  will  permit,  rescued 
from  their  sufferings,  and  enabled  with  thankful  hearts  and 
cheerful  voices  to  praise  their  God  for  his  goodness,  and  bless 
their  benefactors  for  their  humane  attention.1 

This  first  visit  of  Bishop  Seabury  to  Boston  was 
prolonged  several  weeks,  and  the  opportunity  was 
improved  by  him  and  Mr.  Parker  to  confer  together 
and  consider  well  the  condition  of  the  Church  in  New 
England  and  the  States  to  the  southward.  An  ordi- 
nation was  held  on  Thursday,  the  27th  of  March,  and 
the  Rev.  John  C.  Ogden,  deacon,  advanced  to  the 
priesthood.  It  was  the  first  ordination  in  Massachu- 
setts by  an  American  bishop,  and  no  doubt  attracted 
as  much  attention  as  when  two  years  before  he  went 
to  Rhode  Island  and  admitted  a  young  candidate  to 
the  order  of  deacons,  and  three  days  later  to  the 
priesthood.  "  Last  Wednesday  morning,"  said  a  cor- 
respondent under  date  of  Newport,  March  20,  1786, 
"  the  Right  Rev.  Dr.  Seabury,  Bishop  of  the  Episco- 
pal Church  in  Connecticut,  held  a  special  ordination 
in  Trinity  Church  in  this  city,  at  which  time  Mr. 
John  Bissett,  a  young  gentleman  lately  from  Scotland, 
was  admitted  to  the  priesthood.  We  do  not  recollect 
ever  seeing  so  crowded  a  congregation  as  collected 
upon  this  occasion." 2  If  Trinity  Church,  Boston,  was 
not  crowded  when  Mr.  Ogden  was  ordained,  the  serv- 
ice was  one  which  interested  Episcopalians  generally, 
and  had  its  value  as  an  example. 

Before  the  bishop  left  the  city,  he  called  upon  Dr. 

1  Sermon,  pp.  17-20. 

2  The  Connecticut  Journal,  March  29,  1786. 


330  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

Mather  Byles,  then  living  in  retirement,  who,  though 
a  Congregational  divine,  was  yet  a  sturdy  loyalist 
during  the  Kevolution,  and  had  a  son  who  entered 
the  ministry  of  the  Church  of  England  and  was  pro- 
scribed and  banished  for  entertaining  the  political 
views  of  his  father.  Dr.  Byles  was  a  noted  wit,  and 
so  ready  with  his  puns  and  sarcasms  that  seldom  did 
any  one  try  to  match  him  in  this  line  without  coming 
off  the  worse  for  the  conflict.  When  Seabury  paid 
him  the  compliment  of  a  visit,  he  received  him  very 
cordially,  and  said  with  a  mixture  of  irony :  "I  am 
happy  to  see,  in  my  old  age,  a  bishop  on  this  side  the 
Atlantic,  and  I  hope  you  will  not  refuse  to  give  me 
the  right  hand  of  fellowship."  To  which  the  bishop 
replied  :  "  As  you  are  a*  left-handed  brother,  I  think 
fit  to  give  you  my  left  hand;"  which  he  accordingly 
did.  The  conversation  soon  turned  upon  the  general 
subject  of  the  church,  and  it  being  St.  Mark's  day, 
and  public  services  as  usual,  the  doctor  inquired, 
"  Why  is  it  that  you  churchmen  still  keep  up  the  old 
Koinish  practice  of  worshipping  saints  ?  "  "  We  do 
not  worship  saints,"  was  the  quick  reply ;  "  we  only 
thank  God  that  the  church  has  had  such  worthy  advo- 
cates, and  pray  him  to  give  us  hearts  and  strength  to 
follow  their  example."  "  Aye,"  exclaimed  the  other, 
"  I  know  you  are  fond  of  traditions  ;  but  I  trust  we 
have  now  many  good  saints  here  in  our  church,  and 
for  my  part,  I  had  rather  have  one  living  saint  than 
a  half  dozen  dead  ones."  "May  be  so,"  rejoined  the 
bishop,  "  for  I  suppose  you  are  of  the  same  mind  with 
Solomon,  who  said  that '  a  living  dog  is  better  than  a 
dead  lion/  " 

So   zealous   and  vigilant  a  man  as  the  venerable 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  331 

Learning  could  not  allow  his  pen  to  rest  while  the 
Church  was  in  a  divided  state  and  enemies  were  rising 
up  to  take  advantage  of  disagreements  and  dissen- 
sions. He  renewed  his  correspondence  with  Bishop 
White  by  writing  him  the  following  letter  :  — 

STRATFORD,  June  16,  1788. 

MY  REV.  AND  DEAR  SlK,  —  I  have  received  your  kind 
and  obliging  letter,  dated  the  10th  of  last  February,  and  I 
should  have  answered  it  before  this  time,  but  have  waited  to 
hear  how  the  affair  turned  out,  after  the  Convention  in  Vir- 
ginia, with  Dr.  Griffith. 

As  to  the  affair  upon  which  our  correspondence  com- 
menced, it  appears  to  me  that  the  union  of  the  Churches  is, 
at  present,  a  matter  that  cannot  be  effected.  I  was  in  hopes 
to  see  it  accomplished  soon  after  your  return  from  England. 
But  you  inform  me  some  object,  and  will  have  nothing  to  do 

with  the  Scotch  Succession.  Dr.  P y  is  at  the  bottom 

of  the  plan.  He  has  contrived  it  to  make  this  country  all 
Unitarians  ;  for,  to  accomplish  that  he  must  demolish  the 
Church  in  these  States.  However,  if  we  do  not  lend  him  a 
helping  hand,  he  cannot  do  it.  The  Church  will  never  fall, 
unless  it  is  pulled  down  by  her  own  members. 

Perhaps  you  will  say,  you  cannot  think  there  is  any  such 
scheme  on  foot.  It  will  not  be  long  before  you  will  find 
that  what  I  have  told  you  is  fact.  The  Presbyterians  are 

employed  by ,  to  fill  all  the  Southern  States  with  their 

sort  of  Ministers,  before  the  Church  is  supplied  with  Episco- 
pal Clergymen.  Where  people  have  no  principles  about  the 
nature  of  a  Christian  Church,  a  man  ordained  by  the  Laity 
is  as  good  as  any.  And  a  man  who  professes  to  believe  no 
creed,  but  only  this,  that  he  believes  not  in  any  creed,  is  as 
good  a  Christian  as  any  man  can  be.  By  this  scheme  the 
Unitarian  doctrine  is  to  take  place.  In  order  to  preserve 
the  Church,  the  members  should  be  vigilant,  lest  the  foun- 
dation should  be  undermined  by  clandestine  enemies.  If 
true  Christianity  is  not  preserved  by  the  Episcopal  Church, 


332  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

it  will  soon  take  its  flight  from  these  States,  for  Unitarians 
will  be  the  whole. 

In  order  that  the  common  people,  members  of  the_Church 
in  This  State.  n^Tl*-  "iufc^lft"1^  ^ie  nature  of  the  Christian 
Church,  and  some  of  its  leading  doctrines,  I  have  lately  pub- 
lished a  small  treatise  upon  various  subjects,  a  copy  of 
which  I  now  send  you.  This  I  should  not  have  presumed 
to  do,  if  you  had  not  in  a  familiar  manner  expressed  your 
desire  that  I  would  communicate  to  you  any  matters  that 
might  turn  up  with  regard  to  our  Church. 

If  you  should,  upon  the  reading  of  it,  approve  what  I  have 
advanced,  I  should  be  glad  to  know  if  reprinting  of  it  would 
be  of  any  advantage  to  the  people  of  your  State,  who  are 
under  your  care.  If  we  desire  to  preserve  the  Church,  we 
must  acquaint  the  people  for  what  end  the  Church  was  ap- 
pointed, and  what  the  doctrines  of  a  Christian  Church  are, 
in  order  that  they  may  understand  them. 

Thus  I  have  expressed  my  sentiments  freely,  and  perhaps 
have  been  too  open.  But  this  must  be  my  apology :  in  love 
I  have  done  it,  and  in  love  I  hope  it  may  be  received. 

I  am,  with  every  sentiment  of  esteem  and  regard,  Right 
Rev.  Sir,  your  sincere  friend  and  very  humble  Servant, 

JEREMIAH  LEAMING. 

RIGHT  REV.  BISHOP  WHITE. 

A  convocation  was  held  at  North  Haven,  in  Octo- 
ber of  this  year,  and  the  clergy  were  generally  pres- 
ent,—  but  no  new  steps  were  taken  in  the  way  of 
facilitating  a  union  with  the  Church  in  the  other 
States.  Two  deacons  were  advanced  to  the  priest- 
hood,—  one,  Samuel  Nesbitt,  had  formerly  been  a 
medical  practitioner  in  New  Haven,  and  influential  as 
a  layman  in  securing  some  provision  for  the  support 
of  the  bishop.  In  a  letter  to  his  friend  and  corre- 
spondent in  Vermont,  giving  a  brief  account  of  the 
convocation,  Ashbel  Baldwin  said,  "  The  bishop's 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  333 

daughter  (Mrs.  Taylor)  has  been  dangerously  sick 
this  summer,  which  was  the  cause  of  our  not  making 
you  a  visit  as  was  proposed.  When  we  shall  be  in 
your  quarter  is  at  present  uncertain ;  possibly  next 
spring." 

Soon  after  the  meeting  at  North  Haven,  Bishop 
White  renewed  his  efforts  to  change  the  position  of 
things  in  Massachusetts.  A  general  convention  was 
to  be  held  in  July  of  the  next  year  at  Philadelphia, 
and  he  was  desirous  of  the  presence  and  aid  of  the 
clergy  from  that  important  State.  With  a  view  to 
this  he  urged  upon  Mr.  Parker  that  they  should  se- 
lect a  suitable  presbyter  and  send  him  to  England  for 
consecration,  and  thus  supply  what  the  indifference 
of  the  Church  in  Virginia,  in  the  case  of  Dr.  Griffith, 
had  permitted  to  be  frustrated.  "  I  have  formerly," 
he  said,  "expressed  to  you  another  reason  for  my 
wishing  you  with  us  ;  and  the  reason  still  exists :  the 
effecting  of  a  junction  with  our  brethren  of  Connecti- 
cut." He  seemed  to  lay  the  blame  of  keeping  at  a 
distance  from  their  councils  upon  the  clergy  of  New 
England,  and  Mr.  Parker  must  have  communicated 
the  contents  of  his  letter  to  Bishop  Seabury,  who 
was  conscious  of  having  made  the  first  overtures  for 
union,  and  was  not  willing  to  be  put  in  the  wrong 
in  this  way.  Without  going  into  detail,  he  wrote  in 
reply,  December  16,  1788,  "I  can  now  only  observe, 
that,  as  it  appears  to  me,  all  the  difficulty  lies  with 
those  churches,  and  not  with  us  in  Connecticut.  I 
have  several  times  proposed  and  urged  a  union.  It 
has  been  received  and  treated,  I  think,  coldly.  And 
yet  I  have  received  several  letters  urging  such  a 
union  on  me,  as  though  I  was  the  only  person  who 


334  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

opposed  it.  This  is  not  fair.  I  am  ready  to  treat  of 
and  settle  the  terms  of  union  on  any  proper  notice. 
But  Bishops  White  and  Provoost  must  bear  their  part 
in  it  actively  as  well  as  myself;  and  we  must  come 
into  the  union  on  even  terms,  and  not  as  under- 
lings."1 

MS.  Letter-Book. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  335 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

VALIDITY  OF  CONSECRATION,  AND  LETTER  TO  BISHOP  DRUMMOND; 
DEATH  OF  CHARLES  EDWARD,  AND  RELIEF  FOR  THE  SCOTTISH 
EPISCOPAL  CHURCH ;  ATTACHMENT  OF  HIS  CLERGY,  AND  LETTERS 
TO  TILLOTSON  BRONSON  ;  CONVENTION  TO  MEET  IN  PHILADELPHIA, 
AND  CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  BISHOP  WHITE. 

A.  D.  1788-1789. 

THE  anxiety  of  Seabury  to  have  another  bishop 
consecrated  in  Scotland  for  Connecticut  arose  from  a 
general  dislike  among  his  clergy  and  people  of  the 
new  Prayer  Book,  and  from  a  desire  to  stand  on  equal 
terms  with  his  Episcopal  brethren  of  New  York  and 
Pennsylvania.  No  one  could  possibly  foresee  the  shape 
which  events  would  ultimately  take.  But  as  far  as 
he  might,  he  would  be  prepared  for  every  emergency, 
and  while  acquiescing  in  the  judgment  of  his  Scottish 
friends  as  to  the  consecration  of  another  bishop,  he 
was  determined  to  adhere  to  sound  ecclesiastical  prin- 
ciples, and  not  give  up  anything  essential  to  the  true 
government  of  the  Church. 

The  validity  of  his  Episcopacy  had  been  assailed, 
and  fearing  a  renewal  of  the  question,  he  thought 
necessity  might  be  laid  upon  him  to  establish  the 
Scottish  succession  from  the  restoration  of  Charles  II. 
to  the  Revolution  in  1688  under  William  III.  He 
had  already  obtained  a  list  of  the  succession  of  Scot- 
tish bishops  from  1688  down  to  his  own  consecration 


336  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

at  Aberdeen,  but  he  wished  to  go  farther  back  over 
a  period  where  some  might  pretend  doubt  still  rested. 
The  following  letter,  written  to  Bishop  Abernethy 
Drummond,  not  only  touches  this  point,  but  makes 
other  references  of  peculiar  interest  in  the  history  of 
that  period : l  — 

NEW  LONDON,  CONNECTICUT,  November  7,  1788. 

RIGHT  REVEREND  MY  DEAR  BROTHER  AND  FRIEND,  — 
It  is  so  long  since  you  have  heard  from  me  that  I  apprehend 
you  and  my  good  friends  in  Scotland  will  think  their  mem- 
ory erased  from  my  mind.  Their  memory  is,  however,  dear 
to  me,  and  the  recollection  of  their  attention  to  me  always 
fills  my  heart  with  pleasure. 

Your  letter  which  informed  me  of  your  consecration  for 
the  See  of  Edinburgh  gave  me  great  joy.  I  heartily  bless 
my  God  and  Lord  for  that  event,  and  I  beseech  Him  to  ena- 
ble you  to  do  all  that  good  to  His  Church  which  your  heart, 
I  know,  anxiously  wishes  to  do.  Accept  my  thanks  for  your 
kind  expressions  and  intentions  toward  me.  God,  I  hope, 
will  assist  me  to  become  in  some  degree  worthy  of  the  regard 
you  express  for  me. 

The  public  papers  have  informed  us  of  the  compliance  of 
the  Episcopal  clergy  in  Scotland  with  the  legal  requisition  of 
praying  for  the  reigning  king,  etc.  I  know  them  so  well 
that  I  am  sure  they  never  will  sacrifice  conscience  to  con- 
veniency ;  and  I  cannot  but  rejoice  in  the  event,  which,  as  it 
will  free  them,  I  hope,  effectually,  from  a  great  embarrass- 
ment, so  it  will,  I  trust,  open  the  door  to  great  accessions  to 
the  Church  of  our  dear  Redeemer,  miserably  torn  by  divis- 
ions and  defiled  by  polluted  and  unauthorized  worship  and 
sacraments.  Come  that  day,  gracious  God,  when  all  who 

1  The  original  letter,  indorsed  in  the  handwriting  of  Bishop  Jolly, 
"  Good  Bishop  Seabury's,"  is  in  possession  of  Rev.  John  Dowden,  D.  D., 
Pantonian  Professor,  Theological  College,  Edinburgh,  to  whom  I  am  in- 
debted for  a  correct  copy.  Bishop  Jolly  bequeathed  his  valuable  library 
to  this  institution  in  1838. 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  337 

worship  Thee  shall  do  it  in  the  unity  of  Thy  Church,  in  the 
bond  of  peace,  and  in  righteousness  of  life ! 

Our  state  in  this  country  is  still  unsettled,  and  like  I  fear 
to  continue  so.  Bishop  White,  of  Philadelphia,  seems  dis- 
posed to  an  Ecclesiastical  Union,  but  will  take  no  leading  or 
active  part  to  bring  it  about.  He  will  risk  nothing ;  and 
Bishop  Provoost  seems  so  elated  with  the  honor  of  an  Eng- 
lish Consecration  that  he  affects  to  doubt  the  validity  of 
mine.  This  may  oblige  me  to  establish  the  Scotch  succes- 
sion from  the  Restoration  of  King  Charles  II.  to  what  is 
called  the  Revolution ;  and  I  must  beg  you  to  enable  me  to 
do  so.  How  this  may  best  be  done  you  can  judge  better 
than  I  can.  I  should  suppose  a  certificate  from  the  bishops 
in  Scotland  would  be  sufficient,  naming  those  who  were  conr 
secrated  in  England  under  King  Charles  the  Second  and 
their  successors  till  Episcopal  Government  was  abolished  by 
William  the  Dutchman.  Bishop  Collier's  Eccl.  Hist.,  v.  2, 
lib.  ix.,  p.  887,  says  about  this  time  —  September  6,  1661  — 
Mr.  James  Sharp,  Mr.  Hamilton,  Mr.  Barwell,  and  Mr. 
Loughton  were  consecrated  bishops  (i.  e.,  for  Scotland)  by 
the  Bishop  of  Winchester,  with  the  assistance  of  two  other 
English  Prelates ;  now,  who  were  their  successors  till  the 
establishment  of  Presbyterianism  ?  To  ascertain  this  point 
is  all  I  want. 

Another  objection  Bishop  P 1  makes  against  me  is 

that  I  was  an  enemy  to  my  country,  i.  e.,  I  did  not  disregard 
my  oaths  and  run  headlong  into  the  late  Rebellion,  now  glo- 
rious Revolution.  This  may  answer  for  itself  —  I  broke  no 
oaths,  nor  did  I  trample  on  sacred  obligations  —  God  be 
praised  for  His  grace. 

We  have  some  talk  here  of  getting  an  edition  of  the 
Prayer  Book  printed,  with  the  Canons  and  the  Rubrics  ac- 
commodated to  our  state.  The  book  would  scarcely  be  so 
large  as  the  present.  We  wish  to  know  what  a  common 
edition  of  about  5,000  could  be  done  for  at  Edinburgh.  I 
have  also  an  idea  of  publishing  two  Volumes  of  Sermons  cal- 
culated for  this  meridian,  as  soon  as  I  can  get  a  little  more 
22 


338  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

leisure,  —  the  volumes  to  contain  about  400  pages  each. 
What  would  be  the  Edinburgh  terms  if  I  took  300  copies  — 
what  if  the  whole  edition  ?  You  see  with  how  little  cere- 
mony I  lay  burdens  on  you  —  your  goodness,  I  trust,  will 
excuse  me.  I  wish  to  get  this  Church  into  better  order  be- 
fore I  die,  and  to  leave  something  behind  ine  to  keep  it  so 
when  I  am  gone. 

I  send  you  twelve  copies  of  a  Charity  Sermon  preached  in 
Boston.  Please  to  send  one  to  the  Rt.  Revd.  Bishop  Kil- 
gour,  with  my  dutiful  regards,  to  Bishop  Skinner,  Bishop 
McFarlane,  the  Rev.  Mr.  John  and  Alex.  Allan,  Dr.  Web- 
ster, and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Jolly,  of  Bishop  Skinner's  diocese,  I 
believe.  These  gentlemen  have  all  my  hearty  love  and  es- 
timation. I  send  also  two  copies  of  a  letter  of  one  of  my 
Presbyters  on  the  old  subject  of  Episcopacy — a  battle  which 
we  shall  have  to  fight  over  again  in  this  country.  We  are 
therefore  about  trying  whether  our  poverty  will  permit  us  to 
establish  a  clerical  library  here,  to  consist  of  the  Fathers  of 
the  primitive  Church,  the  controversial  writers  with  the  Dis- 
senters and  Papists,  and  the  standard  authors  of  the  Church 
of  England,  especially  of  the  last  century.  I  wish  you  to 
send  one  of  these  letters  to  Bishop  Skinner. 

We  have  now  sixteen  Presbyters  in  this  Diocese,  and  four 
Deacons  who  will  soon  be  put  into  Priests'  orders.  Four 
more,  i.  «.,  twenty-four  in  the  whole,  will  be  as  many  as  the 
present  ability  of  the  Church  can  support.  It  does  however 
grow,  and  converts  from  Presbyterianism  are  not  unfre- 
quent. 

We  are  also  endeavoring  to  establish  an  academy  for  the 
education  of  our  own  clergy,  etc.  ;  and  perhaps  if  we  can 
raise  .£14.  or  1500  sterling  by  subscription  in  the  course 
of  the  winter,  of  which  we  have  good  hopes,  to  set  it  a-going 
in  the  course  of  the  next  summer ;  and  flatter  ourselves  that, 
by  making  it  a  general  School  for  fitting  young  gentlemen 
for  the  various  occupations  of  life,  it  will  support  itself. 

My  regards  attend  on  your  Lady.  Remember  me  to  the 
Mr.  Allans  and  families,  Dr.  Webster,  and  all  who  are  kind 
enough  to  think  about  me. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  339 

When  you  do  me  the  favor  to  write  to  me,  could  you  do 
so  by  the  way  of  Glasgow  to  Boston,  directed  to  the  care  of 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Samuel  Parker,  it  would  come  securely  and 
without  expense  to  me.  Mr.  Bowden  is  now  publishing 
"  Remarks  on  Dr.  Chauncy's  (late  of  Boston)  (distorted) 
View  of  Episcopacy."  If  I  knew  how  to  get  such  little 
matters  to  you  readily  it  would  be  a  means  of  letting  you 
know  how  we  go  on.  Pray  for  me,  my  dear  brother,  and 
believe  me  to  be  your  ever  affectionate,  humble  servant, 

SAMUEL  CONNECT. 


The  death  of  Charles  Edward,  the  last  of  the  royal 
House  of  Stuart,  occurred  at  Rome  on  the  31st  of 
January,  1788,  and  there  was  no  longer  any  reason 
for  the  Scottish  bishops  and  clergy  to  refuse  allegiance 
to  the  reigning  sovereign  of  the  House  of  Hanover. 
They  had  experienced  the  benefits  of  his  mild  sway 
and  a  practical  relaxation  of  the  rigor  of  those  penal 
laws  enacted  against  the  Scottish  Episcopal  Church, 
but  till  now  they  had  been  unwilling  to  make  any 
change  and  recognize  the  title  of  King  George  in 
their  public  prayers. 

After  some  preliminary  measures  by  the  different 
diocesan  synods,  which,  with  great  unanimity,  favored 
the  change,  the  Primus  (Bishop  Kilgour)  summoned 
an  Episcopal  synod  to  meet  at  Aberdeen  on  the  24th 
of  April,  and  the  deans  of  the  several  dioceses,  as  rep- 
resentatives of  the  presbyters,  were  also  requested  to 
attend.  The  result  of  the  meeting  was  a  unanimous 
agreement  to  submit  to  the  present  government  as 
invested  in  the  person  of  George  the  Third,  and  to 
testify  this  submission  by  praying  for  him  and  the 
royal  family  in  the  express  words  of  the  English  Lit- 
urgy, hoping  thereby  to  remove  all  suspicion  of  dis- 


340  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

affection,  and  to  obtain  a  repeal  of  the  severe  penal 
enactments  under  which  the  Church  in  Scotland  had 
suffered  during  the  long  period  of  disputed  succession 
to  the  crown.  In  compliance  with  the  determination 
of  this  synod,  the  bishops  issued  circulars  to  the  clergy 
and  enjoined  them  to  publicly  notify  their  respective 
congregations,  on  the  18th  of  May,  that  upon  the 
following  Sunday  "  nominal  prayers  for  the  King  are 
to  be  authoritatively  introduced,  and  afterwards  to 
continue  in  the  religious  assemblies  of  this  Episcopal 
Church."  Accordingly  on  the  25th  of  May  every 
clergyman,  with  one  exception,  "  prayed  by  name  for 
King  George,  the  Queen,  the  Prince  of  Wales,  and 
all  the  royal  family." l 

The  exception  was  the  Rev.  James  Brown,  of  Mon- 
trose,  who  subsequently  inspired  a  little  band  of  mal- 
contents in  Edinburgh,  and  not  only  assumed  the  pas- 
toral charge  of  them,  but  made  a  most  daring  attempt 
to  perpetuate  a  schism  "  by  invading  the  right  of 
the  Episcopate  itself,  having  the  hardihood  to  repair 
to  the  village  of  Downe,  in  Perthshire,  where  Bishop 
Rose  resided,  in  the  extreme  of  dotage,  and  causing 
him  to  perform  the  office  of  consecration!  "2 

When  the  question  was  put  soon  after  to  the  ven- 
erable prelate  whether  the  case  were  so  or  not,  he 
answered  in  all  the  simplicity  of  childhood,  "My  sis- 
ter may  have  done  it,  but  not  I."  Bishop  Rose  was 
a  bachelor,  and  an  aged  sister  was  his  housekeeper 
and  guardian.  With  the  death  of  Brown  and  a  few 
of  his  adherents,  the  attempt  at  schism  came  to  an 
end,  and  the  seed  of  political  disaffection  ceased  to 
exist  among  the  Episcopalians  of  Scotland. 

1  Stephen's  History  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  vol.  iv.,  p.  414. 
8  Annals  of  Scottish  Episcopacy,  p.  83. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  341 

Bishop  Seabury  rejoiced  to  hear  of  the  change  in 
the  relations  of  the  Scottish  Church  to  the  king  on 
the  throne.  He  wrote  to  Bishop  Skinner,  November 
7,  1788,  and  said,  "  The  public  papers  have  an- 
nounced that  the  Episcopal  clergy  in  Scotland  now 
pray  for  the  king  by  name.  I  hope  it  is  true,  and 
flatter  myself  that  it  will  free  them,  erelong,  from 
many  embarrassments. "  It  was  an  unequivocal  proof 
of  their  loyalty  and  steady  determination  to  support 
his  majesty's  government  at  all  times  and  by  every 
means  in  their  power,  and  the  next  step  was  to  ap- 
ply in  due  form  for  relief  from  the  penal  disabil- 
ities. Letters  were  addressed  to  the  archbishops  of 
Canterbury  and  York  and  to  the  Lord  Chancellor 
and  other  temporal  peers  of  influence  in  the  British 
realm,  and  a  bill  was  introduced  into  Parliament  pro- 
viding for  a  repeal  of  the  oppressive  statutes,  and 
that  the  oaths  ordered  by  the  Toleration  Act  of 
Queen  Anne,  "  so  far  as  they  had  a  retrospective 
effect,  might  be  adjusted  in  such  a  manner  that  the 
Episcopal  clergy  would  be  able  sincerely  and  consci- 
entiously to  enjoy  its  benefit."  This  bill  passed 
through  the  House  of  Commons  without  opposition, 
but  failed  of  a  second  reading  in  the  House  of  Lords. 

The  strong  hope  of  ultimate  success  was  still  cher- 
ished, and  Bishop  Skinner,  the  Primus,  chosen  to 
that  office  in  December,  1788,  on  the  resignation  of 
Bishop  Kilgour,  renewed  his  efforts  and  felt  encour- 
aged by  the  continued  aid  and  sympathy  of  three 
personal  friends,  whose  acquaintance  he  had  formed 
during  his  stay  in  London,  watching  the  fate  of  the 
defeated  bill.  These  gentlemen  were  the  Rev.  Dr. 
George  Gaskin,  secretary  to  the  Society  for  Promot- 


342  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

ing  Christian  Knowledge,  Sir  James  Allan  Park,  a 
distinguished  barrister,  and  William  Stevens,  Esq.,  the 
friend  and  correspondent  of  Seabury,  and  a  kins- 
man of  Dr.  Home,  the  Dean  of  Canterbury,  who 
said  of  him  that  he  "  knew  the  trim  of  the  times," 
and  a  better  adviser  could  not  be  had.  They  consti- 
tuted themselves  a  London  committee  of  correspond- 
ence with  the  Scottish  committee,  and  kept  the  lat- 
ter well  informed  of  every  turn  in  political  events 
that  seemed  favorable  to  the  promotion  of  the  desired 
object.  "  Your  Church,"  wrote  Dr.  Gaskin  to  Bishop 
Skinner,  April,  1790,  "  is  now  better  known  on  this 
side  of  the  Tweed  than  it  has  been  for  many  years 
past.  The  spiritual  character  of  yourself  and  your 
worthy  colleagues  is  most  explicitly  recognized  by 
the  prelates  of  our  Bench,  and  I  am  persuaded  they 
are  most  willingly  ready  to  lend  their  helping  hand 
towards  the  accomplishment  of  your  wishes.  The 
business,  however,  they  all  agree,  must  be  considered 
as  a  state  measure,  and  without  the  great  officers  of 
state  nothing  can  be  done." 

The  proposition  to  introduce  into  Parliament  a 
new  bill  of  relief  was  postponed  from  time  to  time ; 
but  finally  an  opportunity  presented  itself  when  the 
Lord  Chancellor  Thurlow,  though  still  opposed  to  its 
passage,  consented  to  the  introduction,  and  Bishop 
Skinner,  the  leading  spirit  in  the  whole  movement, 
repaired  again  to  London,  to  watch  the  progress  of 
the  bill.  It  went  through  the  various  stages  of 
amendment  and  acceptance  in  both  Houses,  and  on 
the  15th  of  June,  1792,  received  the  royal  assent. 
"  The  act  repealed  certain  clauses  of  the  statutes  of 
Queen  Anne,  George  the  First,  and  George  the  Sec- 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  343 

ond.  It  then  provided  that  all  persons  exercising 
the  functions  of  pastors  or  ministers  in  any  Episcopal 
congregation  should  take  and  subscribe  the  oaths  of 
allegiance  and  abjuration,  and  the  assurance,  and 
should  subscribe  a  declaration  of  assent  to  the  Thirty- 
nine  Articles  of  the  Church  of  England,  and,  during 
divine  service,  should  pray  for  the  king  and  royal 
family  in  the  same  form  as  in  the  English  Liturgy." 
It  was  a  complete  relief  for  the  laity,  and  the  clergy 
were  only  "  declared  to  be  liable  in  certain  penalties 
in  the  event  of  their  contravening  the  provisions  of 
the  act." 

Thus  an  end  was  put  to  the  long  embarrassments 
of  the  Scottish  Episcopal  Church  and  to  the  extreme 
severity  of  the  penal  laws,  which  political  considera- 
tions could  no  longer  in  any  measure  justify.  The 
change  in  the  attitude  of  the  non-jurors  of  Scotland 
towards  the  Crown  removed  one  obstacle  to  a  recon- 
ciliation between  Bishop  Seabury  and  the  Church 
outside  of  New  England.  Allegiance  to  a  foreign 
prince  had  now  actually  terminated  forever,  and  they 
were  professedly  as  dutiful  subjects  as  any  in  the 
realm  of  Great  Britain. 

While  Learning,  Parker,  and  others  continued  to 
use  their  pens  in  the  interests  of  a  united  Church  in 
this  country,  Bishop  Seabury  was  looking  on  and 
holding  himself  in  readiness  to  take  advantage  of  the 
first  movement  on  the  part  of  his  opponents  that  in- 
dicated a  disposition  to  recognize  his  just  claims. 
The  twenty  clergymen  in  his  diocese  were  resolute 
supporters  of  his  independence,  and  the  fatherly  re- 
gard which  he  manifested  for  them,  as  well  as  for 

1  Grub's  Eccl.  Hist,  of  Scotland,  vol.  iv.,  pp.  108,  109. 


344  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

those  whom  he  admitted  to  Holy  Orders,  won  their 
entire  confidence  and  affection.  One  of  the  latter 
number  —  Tillotson  Bronson  —  spent  the  first  two 
years  of  his  ministry  in  Vermont,  where  he  had  a 
most  discouraging  field  of  labor,  and  he  applied  to 
the  Bishop  of  Connecticut  for  his  aid  in  obtaining  a 
better  situation.  The  aid  was  cheerfully  rendered, 
and  his  good  offices  secured  for  Mr.  Bronson  the  po- 
sition of  a  supply  for  the  Eev.  Mr.  Montague,  rector 
of  Christ  Church,  Boston,  during  the  absence  of  that 
gentleman  for  several  months  in  Europe.  The  fol- 
lowing letter,  given  in  full,  shows  the  value  put  upon 
such  ministerial  services  in  the  largest  city  of  New 
England  one  hundred  years  ago :  — 

NEW  LONDON,  April  29,  1789. 

DEAB,  SIR,  —  By  a  letter  from  the  Rev.  Mr.  Montague, 
of  Boston,  I  am  informed  that  he  is  unprovided  with  a  cler- 
gyman, and  wishes  you  would  take  charge  of  his  Church 
during  his  absence.  His  terms  are  four  dollars  a  week  and 
the  perquisites  of  the  Church,  and  a  small  favor  relative  to 
board.  How  well  this  will  do  for  you,  you  must  judge.  I 
wish  it  was  more.  It  may  be  of  some  advantage  to  you  to 
spend  a  few  months  in  Boston,  and  this  allowance  may 
probably  enable  you  to  live  there.  If  you  think  to  accept 
it,  you  had  better  come  on.  You  can  stay  here  without  ex- 
pense till  you  hear  from  him.  He  expects  to  sail  in  three  or 
four  weeks.  Let  me  hear  from  you  by  next  Post. 
Your  affect'  friend  and  serv't, 

S.,  Bp.  Connect.1 

Mr.  Bronson  accepted  the  position,  and  was  soon 
at  work  in  a  sphere  where  he  needed,  as  he  sought, 
the  advice  and  guidance  of  the  bishop.  A  young 

1  MS.  Letter. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  345 

man  of  superior  education,  but  without  personal 
means,  he  was  naturally  desirous  of  a  permanent  set- 
tlement when  his  temporary  engagement  at  Boston 
had  closed.  Another  letter  from  Bishop  Seabury, 
written  in  answer  to  inquiries  with  a  view  to  this 
end,  is  characterized  by  great  good  sense,  and  is  not 
inappropriate  as  a  brief  exhortation  to  young  clergy- 
men of  the  present  day. 

July  2,  1 789. 

REV.  AND  DEAK  SIR, —  I  should  have  written  to  you 
this  morning  in  answer  to  yours  of  June  29th,  but  the  Post 
going  out  an  hour  earlier  than  usual  deprived  me  of  the  op- 
portunity, and  also  of  the  opportunity  of  sending  a  letter 
which  I  had  written  to  Mr.  Parker.  Inform  him,  if  you 
please,  of  this  circumstance. 

My  advice  in  the  matter  you  mention  is  that  as  it  is  proba- 
ble Mr.  Montague  will  be  some  time  absent,  may  you  be 
very  attentive  to  your  duty  in  his  church,  and  endeavor  to 
acquit  yourself  in  the  best  manner  you  can,  both  in  reading 
prayers  and  preaching,  without  being  over-solicitous  to  court 
Mr.  Parker  or  any  one  else.  Pay  him,  however,  due  respect, 
and  treat  every  one  with  attention.  A  steady  course  of 
proper  conduct  without  servility  or  negligence  will  recom- 
mend you  more  than  any  studied  behavior;  and  you  will 
probably  obtain  the  Assistant's  place  without  appearing  to 
aim  at  it  much  sooner  than  by  all  the  court  you  can  make. 
Let  me,  however,  caution  you  not  to  set  your  heart  on  it, 
nor  make  any  direct  interest  for  it,  but  trust  to  your  general 
good  conduct.  In  the  mean  time  make  the  most  of  your 
present  situation,  endeavor  to  take  the  manners  of  the  town, 
and  study  the  art  of  conversation,  thereby  to  make  yourself 
agreeable,  and  your  company  desirable.  Employ  your  leis- 
ure time  in  reading,  —  and  if  you  have  not  already  done  so, 
read  Hooker's  Ecclesiastical  Polity.  And  if  you  can  find 
the  works  of  Joseph  Mede,  study  them  with  all  your  might. 
Should  an  opportunity  to  provide  for  you  present  itself,  you 


346  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

shall  not  be  neglected.  But  if  you  can  support  yourself 
where  you  are,  I  think  it  will  be  best  for  you,  at  least  for 
some  time.  My  opinion  on  any  matter  you  shall  have, 
whenever  you  apply.  Commending  you  to  God's  grace  and 
protection,  I  remain  your  friend  and  humble  serv't, 

S.,  Bp.  Connect.1 

In  another  letter,  he  advised  him  not  to  "  preach 
long  sermons,"  though  he  would  not  have  them  "  re- 
markably short."  The  advice  seems  to  have  been 
given  on  general  principles,  and  not  simply  to  deter  a 
young  clergyman  from  introducing  into  his  earliest 
discourses  too  many  topics. 

As  the  time  for  holding  a  general  convention  in 
Philadelphia  approached,  the  signs  of  reconciliation 
and  union  grew  brighter.  A  better  and  truer  repre- 
sentation of  the  Church  in  New  York  was  secured, 
and  the  delegates  from  that  State  were  instructed, 
much  to  the  annoyance  of  Bishop  Provoost,  "  to  pro- 
mote union  by  every  prudent  measure  consistent  with 
the  constitution  of  the  Church  and  the  continuance  of 
the  Episcopal  succession  in  the  English  line."  Pro- 
voost was  still  hostile  to  Bishop  Seabury,  and  unwilling 
to  accept  a  proposition  to  bring  into  the  council  rep- 
resentatives from  all  the  New  England  States.  In  a 
letter  to  Bishop  White,  February  24,  1789,  he  said : 
"  An  invitation  to  the  Church  in  Connecticut  to  meet 
us  in  general  convention  I  conceive  to  be  neither 
necessary  nor  proper,  —  not  necessary  because  I  am 
informed  that  they  have  already  appointed  two  per- 
sons to  attend  the  next  General  Convention  without 
any  invitation  ;  not  proper,  because  it  is  publicly 
known  that  they  have  adopted  a  form  of  Church 

1  MS.  Letter. 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  347 

government  which  renders  them  inadmissible  as  mem- 
bers of  the  Convention  or  union." 

At  that  date  no  formal  appointment  of  persons  from 
Connecticut  to  attend  the  convention  appears  to  have 
been  made,  but  an  invitation  had  been  extended  by 
Bishop  White  to  send  representatives,  —  and  Bishop 
Seabury,  in  a  note  to  Mr.  Parker  of  April  10th,  said : 
"  I  believe  we  shall  send  two  clergymen  to  the  Phila- 
delphia Convention  to  see  whether  a  union  can  be  ef- 
fected. If  it  fail,  the  point  will  here  be  altogether 
given  up."  The  annual  convocation  was  held  in  the 
following  June,  when  the  matter  was  carefully  con- 
sidered, but  the  action  contemplated  by  the  bishop 
was  not  taken.  He  convoked  his  clergy  at  other 
times  as  he  had  occasion  to  confer  with  them,  but  the 
annual  convocation  in  June  was  regarded  rather  as  a 
fixed  appointment,  and  looked  forward  to  with  more 
general  interest.  The  venerable  Learning,  who  was 
not  present  at  this  meeting,  though  still  anxious  to 
bring  about  a  reconciliation,  wrote  to  Bishop  White, 
as  follows,  from 

STRATFORD,  June  9,  1789. 

REV.  AND  DEAR  SIR, —  The  circumstances  of  my  family 
have  prevented  my  attendance  upon  the  two  last  Conven- 
tions in  this  State,  but  I  hear  Bishop  Seabury  had  a  letter 
from  you,  in  which  you  observed  that  you  had  received  a 
letter  from  me  and  had  answered  it ;  but  as  you  heard  noth- 
ing from  me,  supposed  it  had  miscarried.  You  are  right  in 
that  conclusion,  for  that  letter  hath  not  come  to  hand. 

I  am  unacquainted  with  the  subject  of  your  letter  to 
Bishop  Seabury ;  but  report  says  there  was  something  in  it 
concerning  the  union  of  the  Churches,  —  which  thing  I  most 
reverently  wish  might  take  place  upon  that  plan  that  we 
may  worship  God  according  to  our  consciences.  I  have  no 


348  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

doubt  that  such  an  event  would  be  agreeable  to  Bishop  Sea- 
bury,  and  to  all  the  clergy  of  this  State,  and  to  the  Church 
Universal. 

I  cannot  conceive  the  reason  why  you  should  apply  to  the 
Bishops  of  England  to  consecrate  a  Bishop  for  these  States, 
when  we  have  three  Bishops  in  them  already.  It  appears 
to  me  that  we  ought  to  be  united  in  order  that  the  line  of 
succession  of  the  English  and  Scotch  Bishops  might  unite 
in  America,  as  they  were  derived  from  the  same  line  orig- 
inally. 

Bishop  Seabury  has  twenty  Clergymen  in  this  State,  and 
a  very  respectable  body  of  people  under  their  care,  who  are 
true  sons  of  the  Church;  and  if  any  State  should  send  to  the 
English  Bishops  to  consecrate  a  Bishop,  it  would  cast  such 
a  face  upon  affairs,  as  would  exclude  all  possibility  of  a 
union :  for  such  a  measure  would  not  be  adopted  unless  they 
designed  to  keep  up  a  separation  from  us.  We  shall  do 
everything  in  our  power  for  a  union,  that  is  consistent  with 
prudence,  benevolence,  and  religion.  More  than  this  no  one 
can  expect. 

I  am  not  able  to  see  why  there  may  not  be  a  general 
union,  although  we  did  not  agree  in  every  little  circum- 
stance. I  suppose  you  agree  with  us  in  all  Articles  of  Faith. 
Although  you  have  cast  out  two  of  our  Creeds,  I  imagine 
you  do  not  mean  to  deny  the  Divinity  of  our  blessed  Lord : 
for  if  we  are  ever  justified,  it  must  be  by  the  merits  of 
Christ,  and  no  created  being  can  do  anything  by  merit  for 
another.  All  he  can  do  is  only  to  act  up  to  the  dignity  of 
his  nature  ;  and  God  has  a  right  to  all  this,  because  he  gave 
all  the  ability. 

I  do  not  wish  this  letter  to  be  laid  before  the  General  Con- 
vention ;  but  if  you  think  proper,  I  should  have  no  objection 
to  its  being  seen  by  some  gentlemen  of  candor,  that  wish  a 
union  of  this  Church  with  yours. 

I  am  your  most  obedient,  humble  Servant, 

JEREMIAH 

1  Perry's  Historical  Notes  and  Documents,  p.  384. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  349 

Before  the  month  had  ended,  Bishop  Seabury  wrote 
a  long  letter  to  Bishop  White,  giving  his  reasons  for 
not  appearing  with  representatives  from  Connecticut 
at  the  approaching  Convention  in  Philadelphia,  and 
going  into  a  somewhat  critical  review  of  "  The  Pro- 
posed Book,"  and  its  doctrinal  tendencies.  He  re- 
newed his  proposal  for  union  and  uniformity,  and 
hoped  that  such  measures  might  be  adopted  as  would 
remove  all  obstacles,  and  enable  both  parties  to  come 
together  on  fair  and  honorable  terms.  The  letter 
was  dated  at 

NEW  LONDON,  June  29th,  1789. 

RIGHT  REV.  AND  DEAR  SIR,  —  Your  favor  of  December 
9th,  1788,  came  safely  to  me,  though  not  till  the  middle  of 
February.  I  heartily  thank  you  for  it,  and  for  the  sentiments 
of  candor  and  Christian  unity  it  contains,  and  beg  you  to 
believe  that  nothing  on  my  part  shall  be  wanting  to  keep  up 
a  friendly  intercourse,  and  the  nearest  possible  connection 
with  you,  and  with  all  the  Churches  in  the  United  States, 
that  our  different  situations  can  permit. 

That  your  letter  has  not  been  sooner  attended  to  has  not 
been  owing  to  disrespect  or  negligence.  I  was  unwilling  to 
reply  to  the  great  and  interesting  subject  of  union  between 
the  Church  of  Connecticut  and  the  Southern  Churches, 
merely  on  the  dictates  of  my  own  judgment ;  and  as  we 
were  about  to  call  a  Convention  of  Lay  delegates  from  our 
several  congregations,  to  provide  for  the  support  of  their 
Bishop,  and  to  consider  of  the  practicability  of  instituting 
an  Episcopal  Academy  in  this  State,  it  was  thought  best 
that  the  point  of  sending  Lay  delegates  to  the  General  Con- 
vention should  come  fairly  before  them.  The  annual  Con- 
vocation of  our  Clergy  was  also  to  meet  in  June,  and  I  de- 
termined to  take  their  sentiments  on  the  subject  of  sending 
some  of  their  body  to  your  Convention. 

When  the  matter  was  proposed  to  the  Lay  Convention, 
after  some  conversation,  they  declined  every  interference  in 


350  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

Church  government  or  in  reformation  of  Liturgies.  They 
supposed  the  government  of  the  Church  to  be  fixed,  and  that 
they  had  no  right  to  alter  it  by  introducing  a  new  power 
into  it.  They  hoped  the  old  Liturgy  would  be  retained, 
with  little  alteration  ;  and  these  matters,  they  thought,  be- 
longed to  the  Bishops  and  Clergy,  and  not  to  them.  They 
therefore  could  send  no  delegates,  though  they  wished  for 
unity  among  the  Churches,  and  for  uniformity  of  worship  ; 
but  could  not  see  why  these  great  objects  could  not  be  better 
secured  on  the  old  ground  than  on  the  new  ground  that  had 
been  taken  with  you. 

The  Clergy  supposed  that,  in  your  Constitution,  any  rep- 
resentation from  them  would  be  inadmissible  without  Lay 
delegates,  nor  could  they  submit  to  offer  themselves  to  make 
a  part  of  any  meeting  where  the  authority  of  their  Bishop 
had  been  disputed  by  one  Bishop,  and  probably  by  his  in- 
fluence, by  a  number  of  others  who  were  to  compose  that 
meeting.  They  therefore  must  consider  themselves  as  ex- 
cluded, till  that  point  shall  be  settled  to  their  satisfaction, 
which  they  hope  will  be  done  by  your  Convention. 

For  my  own  part,  gladly  would  I  contribute  to  the  union 
and  uniformity  of  all  our  Churches ;  but  while  Bishop  Pro- 
voost  disputes  the  validity  of  my  consecration,  I  can  take 
no  step  towards  the  accomplishment  of  so  great  and  desir- 
able an  object.  This  point,  I  take  it,  is  now  in  such  a  state 
that  it  must  be  settled,  either  by  your  Convention,  or  by  an 
appeal  to  the  good  sense  of  the  Christian  world.  But  as  this 
is  a  subject  in  which  I  am  personally  concerned,  I  shall  re- 
frain from  any  remarks  upon  it,  hoping  that  the  candor  and 
good  sense  of  your  Convention  will  render  the  further  men- 
tion of  it  altogether  unnecessary. 

You  mention  the  necessity  of  having  your  succession  com- 
pleted from  England,  both  as  it  is  the  choice  of  your  Churches, 
and  in  consequence  of  implied  obligations  you  are  under  in 
England.  I  have  no  right  to  dictate  to  you  on  this  point. 
There  can,  however,  be  no  harm  in  wishing  it  were  other- 
wise. Nothing  would  tend  so  much  to  the  unity  and  uni- 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  351 

formity  of  our  Churches,  as  the  three  Bishops  now  in  the 
States  joining  in  the  consecration  of  a  fourth.  I  could  say 
much  on  this  subject,  but  should  I  do  so,  it  may  be  supposed 
to  proceed  from  interested  views.  I  shall  therefore  leave  it 
to  your  own  good  sense,  only  hoping  you  and  the  Conven- 
tion will  deliberately  consider  whether  the  implied  obliga- 
tions in  England  and  the  wishes  of  your  Churches  be  so 
strong  that  they  must  not  give  way  to  the  prospect  of  secur- 
ing the  peace  and  unity  of  the  Church. 

The  grand  objection  in  Connecticut  to  the  power  of  Lay 
delegates  in  your  Constitution  is  their  making  part  of  a 
judicial  Consistory  for  the  trial  and  deprivation  of  Clergy- 
men. This  appears  to  us  to  be  a  new  power,  utterly  un- 
known in  all  Episcopal  Churches,  and  inconsistent  with  their 
constitution.  That  it  should  be  given  up,  we  do  not  expect ; 
power,  we  know,  is  not  easily  relinquished.  We  think,  how- 
ever, it  ought  to  be  given  up ;  and  that  it  will  be  a  source 
of  oppression,  and  that  it  will  operate  as  a  clog  on  the  due 
execution  of  ecclesiastical  authority.  If  a  Bishop  with  his 
Clergy  are  not  thought  competent  to  censure  or  depose  a 
disorderly  brother,  or  not  to  have  sufficient  principle  to  do 
it,  they  are  unfit  for  their  stations.  It  is,  however,  a  pre- 
sumption that  cannot  be  made,  and  therefore  can  be  no 
ground  of  action. 

If  the  power  with  which  your  Constitution  invests  Lay 
delegates  be  conformable  to  the  sentiments  of  some  of  our 
best  writers,  I  confess  I  am  unacquainted  with  them ;  and  as 
I  profess  myself  to  be  always  open  to  conviction  and  infor- 
mation, I  should  be  glad  to  know  to  what  writers  I  am  to 
apply  for  that  purpose.  And  as  to  the  principles  which  have 
governed  in  the  English  Church,  I  have  always  understood 
that  the  Liturgy  and  Canons  and  Articles  were  settled  and 
agreed  upon  by  the  Convocation,  and  were  then,  by  Act  of 
Parliament,  made  part  of  the  English  Constitution.  I  know 
not  that  the  Laity  had  anything  further  to  do  with  it.' 

With  regard  to  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island,  I  never 
understood  your  Constitution  has  been  adopted  in  either  of 


352  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

them.  Mr.  Parker,  in  Boston,  and  I  suppose  the  other  con- 
gregation there,  adopted  your  Liturgy  with  but  little  varia- 
tion ;  but  I  know  not  that  it  was  done  elsewhere.  And  an 
attempt  to  introduce  it  into  Newport,  I  speak  my  own  opin- 
ion, has  laid  the  foundation  of  such  dissensions  in  that  con- 
gregation as,  I  fear,  will  long  continue. 

Was  it  not  that  it  would  run  this  letter  to  an  unreason- 
able length,  I  would  take  the  liberty  to  mention  at  large  the 
objections  that  have  been  here  made  to  the  Prayer  Book 
published  at  Philadelphia.  I  will  confine  myself  to  a  few, 
and  even  these  I  should  not  mention  but  from  a  hope  they 
will  be  obviated  by  your  Convention.  The  mutilating  the 
Psalms  is  supposed  to  be  an  unwarrantable  liberty,  and  such 
as  was  never  before  taken  with  Holy  Scriptures  by  any 
Church.  It  destroys  that  beautiful  chain  of  Prophecy  that 
runs  through  them,  and  turns  their  application  from  Mes- 
siah and  the  Church  to  the  temporal  state  and  concerns  of 
individuals.  By  discarding  the  word  Absolution,  and  mak- 
ing no  mention  of  Regeneration  in  Baptism,  you  appear  to 
give  up  those  points,  and  to  open  the  door  to  error  and  delu- 
sion. The  excluding  of  the  Nicene  and  Athanasian  Creeds 
has  alarmed  the  steady  friends  of  our  Church,  lest  the  doc- 
trine of  Christ's  divinity  should  go  out  with  them.  If  the 
doctrine  of  those  Creeds  be  offensive,  we  are  sorry  for  it, 
and  shall  hold  ourselves  so  much  the  more  bound  to  retain 
them.  If  what  are  called  the  damnatory  clauses  in  the  lat- 
ter be  the  objection,  cannot  those  clauses  be  supported  by 
Scripture  ?  Whether  they  can,  or  cannot,  why  not  discard 
those  clauses,  and  retain  the  doctrinal  part  of  the  Creed? 
The  leaving  out  the  descent  into  hell  from  the  Apostles' 
Creed  seems  to  be  of  dangerous  consequence.  Have  we  a 
right  to  alter  the  analogy  of  faith  handed  down  to  us  by  the 
Holy  Catholic  Church  ?  And  if  we  do  alter  it,  how  will  it 
appear  that  we  are  the  same  Church  which  subsisted  in 
primitive  times?  The  article  of  the  descent,  I  suppose,  was 
put  into  the  Creed  to  ascertain  Christ's  perfect  humanity, 
that  he  had  a  human  soul,  in  opposition  to  those  heretics 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  353 

who  denied  it,  and  affirmed  that  his  body  was  actuated  by 
the  divinity.  For  if  when  he  died,  and  his  body  was  laid  in 
the  grave,  his  soul  went  to  the  receptacle  of  departed  spirits, 
then  he  had  a  human  soul  as  well  as  body,  and  was  very  and 
perfect  man.  The  Apostles'  Creed  seems  to  have  been  the 
Creed  of  the  Western  Church  ;  the  Nicene,  of  the  Eastern ; 
and  the  Athanasian,  to  be  designed  to  ascertain  the  Catholic 
doctrine  of  the  Trinity,  against  all  opposers.  And  it  always 
appeared  to  me,  that  the  design  of  the  Church  of  England, 
in  retaining  the  three  Creeds,  was  to  show  that  she  did  re- 
tain the  analogy  of  the  Catholic  faith,  in  common  with  the 
Eastern  and  Western  Church,  and  in  opposition  to  those 
who  denied  the  Trinity  of  persons  in  the  Unity  of  the  Di- 
vine Essence.  Why  any  departure  should  be  made  from 
this  good  and  pious  example  I  am  yet  to  seek. 

There  seems  in  your  book  a  dissonance  between  the  Of- 
fices of  Baptism  and  Confirmation.  In  the  latter  there  is  a 
renewal  of  a  vow,  which  in  the  former  does  not  appear  to 
have  been  explicitly  made.  Something  of  the  same  discord- 
ance appears  in  the  Catechism. 

Our  regard  for  primitive  practice  makes  us  exceedingly 
grieved  that  you  have  not  absolutely  retained  the  sign  of  the 
Cross  in  Baptism.  When  I  consider  the  practice  of  the  an- 
cient Church,  before  Popery  had  a  being,  I  cannot  think 
the  Church  of  England  justifiable  in  giving  up  the  sign  of 
the  Cross,  where  it  was  retained  by  the  first  Prayer  Book 
of  Edward  VI.  Her  motive  may  have  been  good ;  but 
good  motives  will  not  justify  wrong  actions.  The  conces- 
sions she  has  made  in  giving  up  several  primitive,  and  I 
suppose  apostolical  usages,  to  gratify  the  humors  of  fault- 
finding men,  show  the  inefficacy  of  such  conduct.  She  has 
learned  wisdom  from  her  experiences.  Why  should  not  we 
also  take  a  lesson  in  her  school?  If  the  humor  be  pursued 
of  giving  up  points  on  every  demand,  in  fifty  years  we  shall 
scarce  have  the  name  of  Christianity  left.  For  God's  sake, 
my  dear  Sir,  let  us  remember  that  it  is  the  particular  busi- 
ness of  the  Bishops  of  Christ's  Church  to  preserve  it  pure 
23 


354  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

and  undefiled,  in  faith  and  practice,  according  to  the  model 
left  by  apostolic  practice.  And  may  God  give  you  grace  and 
courage  to  act  accordingly  ! 

In  your  Burial  Office,  the  hope  of  a  future  resurrection  to 
eternal  life  is  too  faintly  expressed,  and  the  acknowledgment 
of  an  intermediate  state,  between  death  and  the  resurrec- 
tion, seems  to  be  entirely  thrown  out ;  though,  that  this  was 
a  catholic,  primitive,  and  apostolical  doctrine  will  be  denied 
by  none  who  attend  to  this  point. 

The  articles  seem  to  be  altered  to  little  purpose.  The 
doctrines  are  neither  more  clearly  expressed  nor  better 
guarded  ;  nor  are  the  objections  to  the  old  articles  obviated. 
And,  indeed,  this  seems  to  have  been  the  case  with  several 
other  alterations  ;  they  appear  to  have  been  made  for  alter- 
ation's sake,  and  at  least  not  to  have  mended  the  matter 
they  aimed  at. 

That  the  most  exceptionable  part  of  the  English  book  is 
the  Communion  Office  may  be  proved  by  a  number  of  very 
respectable  names  among  her  Clergy.  The  grand  fault  in 
that  office  is  the  deficiency  of  a  more  formal  oblation  of  the 
elements,  and  of  the  invocation  of  the  Holy  Ghost  to  sanc- 
tify and  bless  them.  The  Consecration  is  made  to  consist 
merely  in  the  Priest's  laying  his  hands  on  the  elements  and 
pronouncing  "  This  is  my  body"  etc.,  which  words  are  not 
consecration  at  all,  nor  were  they  addressed  by  Christ  to  the 
Father,  but  were  declarative  to  the  Apostles.  This  is  so 
exactly  symbolizing  with  the  Church  of  Rome  in  an  error ; 
an  error,  too,  on  which  the  absurdity  of  Transubstantiation 
is  built,  that  nothing  but  having  fallen  into  the  same  error 
themselves  could  have  prevented  the  enemies  of  the  Church 
from  casting  it  in  her  teeth.  The  efficacy  of  Baptism,  of 
Confirmation,  of  Orders,  is  ascribed  to  the  Holy  Ghost,  and 
His  energy  is  implored  for  that  purpose  ;  and  why  he  should 
not  be  invoked  in  the  consecration  of  the  Eucharist,  espe- 
cially as  all  the  old  Liturgies  are  full  to  the  point,  I  cannot 
conceive.  It  is  much  easier  to  account  for  the  alterations 
of  the  first  Liturgy  of  Edward  VI.,  than  to  justify  them ; 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  355 

and  as  I  have  been  told  there  is  a  vote  on  the  minutes  of 
your  Convention,  anno  1786,  I  believe,  for  the  revision  of 
this  matter,  I  hope  it  will  be  taken  up,  and  that  God  will 
raise  up  some  able  and  worthy  advocate  for  this  primitive 
practice,  and  make  you  and  the  Convention  the  instruments 
of  restoring  it  to  His  Church  in  America.  It  would  do  you 
more  honor  in  the  world  and  contribute  more  to  the  union 
of  the  Churches  than  any  other  alterations  you  can  make, 
and  would  restore  the  Holy  Eucharist  to  its  ancient  dignity 
and  efficacy. 

I  shall  close  this  letter  with  renewing  a  former  proposal 
for  union  and  uniformity,  viz  :  that  you  and  Bishop  Pro- 
voost,  with  as  many  proctors  from  the  Clergy  as  shall  be 
thought  necessary,  meet  me  with  an  equal  number  of  proc- 
tors from  Connecticut.  We  should  then  be  on  equal  ground, 
on  which  ground  only,  I  presume,  you  would  wish  to  stand, 
and  I  doubt  not  everything  might  be  settled  to  mutual  satis- 
faction, without  the  preposterous  method  of  ascertaining 
doctrines,  etc.,  etc.,  by  a  majority  of  votes. 

Hoping  that  all  obstructions  may  be  removed  by  your 
Convention,  and  beseeching  Almighty  God  to  direct  us  in 
the  great  work  of  establishing  and  building  up  His  Church 
in  peace  and  unity,  truth,  and  charity,  and  purity, 

I  remain,  with  great  regard  and  esteem,  your  affectionate 
Brother  and  very  humble  Servant, 

SAMUEL,  Bp.  Connect. 

I  presume  you  will  lay  this  letter  before  the  Convention, 
and  I  have  to  request  that  I  may  be  informed  of  their  pro- 
ceedings, as  soon  as  convenient,  as  all  our  proceedings  will 
be  suspended  till  then,  or,  at  least,  till  November. 

The  remarks  on  your  Prayer  Book  are  the  principal  ones 
I  have  heard  made.  They  are  here  repeated  from  memory, 
and  I  have  not  your  Book  at  hand  with  which  to  compare 
them. 

I  observe  you  mention  that  the  authority  of  Lay  delegates 
in  your  Constitution  is  misunderstood.  We  shall  be  glad  to 
be  better  informed,  and  shall  not  pertinaciously  persist  in 


356  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

any  unfair  constructions,  when  they  are  fairly  pointed  out 
to  us.  That  the  assent  of  the  Laity  should  be  given  to  the 
laws  which  affect  them  equally  with  the  Clergy,  I  think  is 
right,  and  I  believe  will  be  disputed  nowhere,  and  the 
rights  of  the  Laity  we  have  no  disposition  to  invade.1 

This  letter  was  followed,  a  month  later,  by  another 
addressed  to  the  Rev.  Dr.  Smith,  in  which  his  atten- 
tion was  directed  to  the  unhappy  course  of  Bishop 
Provoost  and  to  the  action  of  a  former  convention 
at  Philadelphia,  whereby  a  distinction  was  made  be- 
tween English  and  Scotch  ordinations.  "  Before  I 
wrote  to  Bishop  White,"  said  the  Bishop  of  Connecti- 
cut, "I  took  the  most  deliberate  pains  to  obtain  the 
sentiments  of  both  clergy  and  laity ;  and  I  should 
not  now  think  myself  at  liberty  to  act  contrary  to 
their  sentiments,  even  did  not  my  own  coincide  with 
theirs.  I  have,  however,  the  strongest  hope  that  all 
difficulties ,  will  be  removed  by  your  Convention  — 
that  the  Connecticut  Episcopacy  will  be  explicitly 
acknowledged,  and  that  Church  enabled  to  join  with 
you  without  giving  up  her  own  independency." 

The  spirit  of  Dr.  Smith  had  become  eminently 
conciliatory,  and  henceforth  he  was  to  be  a  great 
power  in  composing  the  differences  which  once  threat- 
ened to  be  permanent.  He  and  Seabury  kneeled  to- 
gether and  were  ordained  deacons  and  priests  in  the 
palace  at  Fulham  by  the  same  bishops,  acting  for 
the  disabled  Bishop  of  London,  on  the  same  days  in 
1753;  and  if  their  p&ths  had  sometimes  crossed  each 
other  since,  they  were  now  to  run  side  by  side  and 
lead  to  peace  and  unity  in  the  Church, 

1  MS.  Letter-Book. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABUKY.  357 


CHAPTER  XX. 

CONVENTION  IN  PHILADELPHIA,  AND  APPLICATION  FOR  THE  CONSE- 
CRATION OF  KEV.  EDWARD  BASS;  DEATH  OF  DR.  GRIFFITH,  AND  HIS 
FUXKRAL;  RESULTS  OF  THK  CONVENTION,  AND  ADJOUKXMENT; 
LETTER  OF  DR.  SMITH,  AND  PERSISTENCE  OF  BISHOP  PROVOOSTJ 

BISHOP    SEABURY    AND     THE     EASTERN     CHURCHES    IN     PHILADEL- 
PHIA, AND    LETTER    OF    LEAMING. 

A.  D.  1789. 

THE  convention  referred  to  in  the  previous  chap- 
ter met  at  Philadelphia,  Tuesday,  July  28th,  and  the 
Church  in  seven  States  was  present,  as  heretofore,  by 
representatives,  numbering  eighteen  of  the  clerical 
order  and  sixteen  of  the  laity.  From  New  York  ap- 
peared the  Rev.  Dr.  Abraham  Beach  and  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Benjamin  Moore,  both  in  sympathy  with  the 
bishop  and  clergy  of  Connecticut  rather  than  with 
the  views  of  Bishop  Provoost,  whose  indisposition  pre- 
vented him  from  attending  the  convention.  Among 
the  deputies  from  Pennsylvania  and  Maryland  were 
Joseph  Pilmore,  Colin  Ferguson,  and  John  Bisset,  all 
of  whom  had  been  ordained  by  Bishop  Seabury,  and 
their  admission  to  seats  without  regard  to  former  res- 
olutions was  a  tacit  recognition  of  the  validity  of  or- 
ders conferred  in  the  line  of  the  Scottish  non-jurors. 

But  this  was  not  all.  A  measure  had  been  taken 
which  was  to  bring  the  convention  to  a  direct  vote 
on  the  question  of  the  Scottish  Episcopacy  and  the 


358  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

relative  situation  of  the  Church  in  Connecticut.  Six 
presbyters  of  Massachusetts  and  New  Hampshire, 
guided  by  the  wisdom  and  sagacity  of  the  Rev.  Sam- 
uel Parker,  on  the  4th  of  June,  1789,  "  nominated, 
elected,  and  appointed "  the  Eev.  Edward  Bass,  of 
Newburyport,  to  be  their  bishop,  and  in  the  act  duly 
signed  and  laid  before  this  General  Convention  they 
said,  "  We  now  address  the  Eight  Reverend  the 
Bishops  in  the  States  of  Connecticut,  New  York,  and 
Pennsylvania,  praying  their  united  assistance  in  con- 
secrating our  said  brother,  and  canonically  investing 
him  with  the  apostolic  office  and  powers.  This  re- 
quest we  are  induced  to  make  from  a  long  acquaint- 
ance with  him  and  from  a  perfect  knowledge  of  his 
being  possessed  of  that  love  to  God  and  benevolence 
to  men,  that  piety,  learning,  and  good  morals,  that 
prudence  and  discretion,  requisite  to  so  exalted  a  sta- 
tion, as  well  as  that  personal  respect  and  attachment 
to  the  communion  at  large  in  these  States,  which  will 
make  him  a  valuable  acquisition  to  the  order  and,  we 
trust,  a  rich  blessing  to  the  Church." 

Bishop  White,  by  virtue  of  his  office,  presided  in 
the  convention,  and  presented  the  address  and  also 
letters  from  Bishop  Seabury  to  himself  and  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Smith,  intimating  at  the  same  time  his  own  readi- 
ness to  join  in  any  measures  that  might  be  adopted 
for  the  formation  of  a  permanent  union,  but  express- 
ing his  doubt  of  the  propriety  of  "  proceeding  to  any 
consecration  without  first  obtaining  from  the  English 
prelates  the  number  held  in  their  Church  to  be  ca- 
nonically necessary  to  such  an  act." 

Upon  reading  the  letters  it  appeared,  according  to 
the  language  of  the  journal,  "that  Bishop  Seabury 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  359 

lay  under  some  misapprehensions  concerning  an  en- 
try in  the  minutes  of  a  former  convention  as  intend- 
ing some  doubt  of  the  validity  of  his  consecration." 
This  certainly  was  a  mild  way  of  stating  the  case,  con- 
sidering all  the  circumstances ;  but  the  doubt  was 
now  entirely  removed  by  the  adoption,  unanimously, 
of  a  resolution  "  that  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  con- 
vention that  the  consecration  of  the  Eight  Rev.  Dr. 
Seabury  to  the  Episcopal  office  is  valid."  The  chief 
obstacle  to  consecrating  Mr.  Bass,  in  compliance  with 
the  request  of  the  Eastern  clergy,  was  apparently 
overcome  by  the  adoption  of  this  resolution.  Bishop 
White  found  himself,  as  he  said,  "  in  a  very  delicate 
situation,  standing  alone  as  he  did  in  the  business, 
and  as  president  of  the  assembled  body.  Many 
speeches  were  made,  wrhich  implied  that  the  result  of 
the  deliberation  must  involve  the  acquiescence  of  the 
two  bishops  of  the  English  line  ;  while  it  was  thought 
by  the  only  one  of  them  present  that  no  determina- 
tion of  theirs  would  warrant  the  breach  of  his  faith 
impliedly  pledged,  as  he  apprehended,  in  consequence 
of  measures  taken  by  a  preceding  convention."  l 

Dr.  Griffith,  whose  consecration,  two  years  before, 
was  desired  by  Virginia  without  incurring  the  expense 
of  a  voyage  to  England,  had  wholly  relinquished  his 
appointment,  and  came  to  this  convention,  the  sole 
clerical  deputy,  as  hitherto,  from  that  State.  His 
sudden  death,  at  the  house  of  Bishop  White,  on  the 
Monday  after  the  session  commenced,  produced  a  sor- 
rowful effect  upon  the  members,  and  they  arranged 
for  the  funeral  with  much  solemnity,  and  appointed 
Dr.  Smith  to  preach  a  sermon  on  the  occasion,  a  copy 
of  which  was  requested  for  publication. 

1  Memoirs  of  P.  E.  Church,  p.  142. 


360  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

The  day  after  the  funeral  the  Convention  resumed 
the  consideration  of  the  application  from  the  clergy 
of  Massachusetts  and  New  Hampshire,  and  the  minds 
of  members  had  been  prepared  by  private  confer- 
ences in  the  interval  to  act  upon  a  series  of  resolu- 
tions offered  by  the  Kev.  Dr.  Smith,  and  which  were 
in  substance  as  follows :  that  "  a  complete  order  of 
bishops,  derived  as  well  under  the  English  as  the 
Scots  line  of  Episcopacy,  doth  now  subsist  within  the 
United  States  of  America ;  "  that  Bishops  White,  Pro- 
voost,  and  Seabury  are  fully  competent  to  every 
proper  act  and  duty  of  the  Episcopal  office  and  char- 
acter in  this  country  as  well  in  respect  to  the  conse- 
cration of  other  bishops,  and  the  ordering  of  priests 
and  deacons,  as  for  the  government  of  the  Church, 
according  to  such  rules,  canons,  and  institutions  as 
then  existed,  or  hereafter  might  be  duly  made  and 
ordained ;  and  that  in  Christian  charity  and  from  ne- 
cessity and  expediency  as  well,  "the  churches  rep- 
resented in  this  convention  "  ought  to  contribute  in 
every  possible  manner  "  towards  supplying  the  wants 
and  granting  every  just  and  reasonable  request  of 
their  sister  churches"  in  New  England.  Another 
resolution  embraced  a  formal  petition  to  Bishops 
White  and  Provoost  to  join  with  Bishop  Seabury  in 
consecrating  the  bishop-elect  of  the  Eastern  clergy, 
proposing,  however,  that,  previous  to  such  consecra- 
tion, the  churches  in  the  New  England  States  should 
meet  in  this  convention,  to  be  adjourned  for  that  pur- 
pose, and  settle  certain  articles  of  general  union  and 
discipline.  If  any  difficulty  or  delicacy  remained 
with  the  two  first  named  bishops,  or  either  of  them, 
concerning  their  compliance  with  the  request,  the 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  361 

convention  resolved  to  address  the  archbishops  and 
bishops  of  England,  hoping  thereby  to  remove  the 
difficulty  and  obtain  their  approval. 

The  adoption  of  these  resolutions  unanimously  was 
the  most  important  business  transacted  by  the  con- 
vention. Whatever  else  was  done  was  subordinate 
to  the  idea  of  reconciliation  and  union.  A  commit- 
tee was  appointed  to  prepare  an  address  of  congratu- 
lation to  General  Washington  on  his  election  to  the 
chief  magistracy  of  the  United  States,  and  another 
to  prepare  an  address  of  thanks  to  the  archbishops  of 
Canterbury  and  York  for  their  good  offices  in  procur- 
ing the  consecration  of  the  American  bishops,  and  at 
the  head  of  each  of  these  committees  was  placed  the 
Eev.  Dr.  Smith.  But  all  other  business  entered  on 
at  this  time  was  left  incomplete,  especially  the  con- 
sideration of  the  proposed  Book  of  Common  Prayer 
and  administration  of  the  sacraments. 

The  convention  adjourned  to  meet  in  Philadelphia, 
Tuesday,  the  29th  of  September  ensuing,  having  em- 
powered a  committee  to  answer  the  letters  of  Bishop 
Seabury  as  far  as  was  necessary,  and  the  application 
of  the  Eastern  clergy  for  the  consecration  of  their 
bishop-elect,  and  to  acquaint  them  with  the  proceed- 
ings of  the  convention,  and  request  their  attendance 
at  the  adjourned  meeting  "  for  the  good  purposes  of 
union  and  general  government." 

No  time  was  now  to  be  lost.  Bishop  White  wrote 
at  once  to  the  Bishop  of  Connecticut  and  expressed  a 
strong  belief  that  he  would  accept  the  invitation  to 
attend  the  convention.  "However  conscious,"  said 
he,  "  of  rectitude  in  the  part  I  have  taken,  and 
which  will  appear  to  you  from  the  journal,  I  am  not 


362  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

without  apprehension  that  it  will  be  misunderstood 
by  a  brother  for  whom  I  entertain  a  sincere  esteem, 
and  with  whom  I  wish  to  be  united  in  religious  la- 
bors. I  can  conscientiously  declare  that  my  professed 
obligations  are  not  supposed  either  without  due  de- 
liberation, or  with  a  desire  to  create  difficulties." 

The  official  invitation  to  Bishop  Seabury  informed 
him  that  the  second  article  of  the  printed  constitu- 
tion, as  now  amended,  removed  his  chief  objection  as 
to  lay  representatives,  and  that  everything  except 
what  was  designed  immediately  to  open  the  door  of 
union  had  been  postponed  for  future  consideration. 
Dr.  Smith  accompanied  the  invitation  with  a  private 
letter,  and  not  only  recited  some  particulars  of  the 
action  taken,  but  offered  Bishop  Seabury  the  hospi- 
tality of  his  house  during  the  session  of  the  conven- 
tion. The  letter  was  dated 

August  16,  1789. 

RIGHT  REV.  AND  DEAR  SIR,  —  I  was  happy  to  receive 
your  letter  of  23d  July,  in  answer  to  mine  of  the  13th,  from 
New  York,  which  came  to  hand  at  a  very  critical  moment, 
viz :  the  first  day  of  our  Convention,  and  enabled  me  to  be 
more  effectually  instrumental  in  projecting  and  prosecuting, 
I  trust,  to  a  nobler  issue,  the  plan  of  an  union  of  all  our 
Churches,  than  your  letter  of  a  prior  date  to  Bishop  White 
gave  us  room  to  hope.  The  healing  and  charitable  idea  of 
"  an  efficacious  union  and  communion  in  all  Essentials  of 
Doctrine,  as  well  as  Discipline,  notwithstanding  some  differ- 
ences in  the  usages  of  Churches,"  in  which  your  letter  as 
well  as  mine  agreed,  and  which  was  at  the  same  time 
strongly  held  up  in  the  Address  of  the  Churches  of  Massa- 
chusetts and  New  Hampshire,  and  also  in  Dr.  Parker's  Let- 
ter, gave  an  opening  at  last,  as  well  by  a  new  clause,  viz : 
the  2d  in  our  ecclesiastical  Constitution,  as  by  5  Resolves 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  363 

imanimously  passed,  to  lay  the  foundation  of  an  union, 
whereon  a  superstructure  may  be  raised,  against  which  even 
the  gates  of  Hell  shall  never  prevail. 

The  4th  of  those  Resolves,  inviting  you,  through  the  door 
so  widely  opened,  to  meet  us  in  the  Convention  at  Philadel- 
phia, adjourned  for  that  end  to  September  29th,  is  the  pre- 
liminary Article  of  this  union ;  and  I  scarce  entertain  a 
doubt  but  that  the  great  Head  of  the  Church  will,  by  His 
blessed  Spirit,  so  replenish  our  hearts  with  love,  and  so  bless 
our  joint  councils,  that  we  shall  attain  a  perfect  uniformity 
in  all  our  Churches :  or,  what  is,  perhaps,  alike  lovely  in 
the  sight  of  God,  a  perfect  harmony  and  brotherly  agree- 
ment wherever,  through  local  circumstances  and  use,  smaller 
differences  may  prevail. 

You  will  see  from  our  printed  journal,  herein  enclosed, 
that,  in  a  committee  of  the  whole,  the  business  of  the 
Eastern  Churches  engaged  our  attention  for  the  first  five 
days  of  our  sitting,  and  though  a  desire  of  union  was  every- 
where evident  among  the  members,  yet  much  difficulty  and 
variety  of  sentiment  and  apprehension  prevailed  as  to  the 
means,  in-so-far  that  there  appeared  more  than  a  probability 
of  coming  to  no  conclusion.  In  this  stage  of  the  business, 
I  requested  a  postponement  for  one  night,  on  the  promise 
of  proposing  something  against  next  morning  which  might 
meet  the  apprehensions  of  all ;  as  we  all  had  but  one  great 
object  of  union  in  view  :  and  I  shall  ever  rejoice  in  it  as  the 
happiest  incident  of  my  life,  and  the  best  service  I  have  ever 
been  able  to  render  to  our  Church,  that  the  Resolves  which 
were  offered  the  next  morning  were  unanimously  and  almost 
instantly  adopted,  as  reconciling  every  sentiment,  and  re- 
moving every  difficulty  which  had  before  appeared  to  ob- 
struct a  general  union. 

Bishop  White,  whom  I  consulted  in  framing  the  Resolves, 
and  Dr.  Moore,  of  New  York,  and  Mr.  (now  Dr.)  Smith, 
of  South  Carolina,  were  particularly  zealous  in  whatever 
tended  to  promote  this  good  work  ;  and  I  am  well  assured 
that  you  are  in  some  mistake  respecting  Bishop  White's 


364  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

having  declined  a  "  Proposal "  for  your  joining  with  him 
and  Bishop  P.  in  consecrating  a  fourth  Bishop.  He  has  as- 
sured me,  and  also  declared  in  Convention,  that  no  such 
proposal  was  ever  made  to  him  ;  and  I  believe  he  has  writ- 
ten, or  will  write,  to  you  on  this  subject.  His  whole  con- 
duct, wherever  your  name  and  Episcopate  have  been  men- 
tioned, does  him  honor,  and  is  perfectly  agreeable  to  his 
well-known  excellent  temper  and  zeal  for  the  peace  and 
unity  of  the  Church.  It  was  Dr.  White  who  seconded,  on  a 
former  occasion,  my  motion  for  not  suffering  any  question  in 
Convention,  which  might  imply  even  a  doubt  of  the  valid- 
ity of  your  consecration,  and  that  at  a  time  when  admitting 
a  doubt  of  that  kind  was  considered  by  some  as  a  good 
means  of  forwarding  his  own  and  Dr.  Provoost's  consecra- 
tion. 

Now  I  cannot  have  the  least  doubt  of  your  attending  the 
adjourned  Convention,  according  to  the  truly  respectable 
invitation  given  you.  I  must  again  repeat  the  invitation, 
that  you  will  make  my  house  your  home,  or  place  of  resi- 
dence, during  your  stay  in  Philadelphia.  The  Rev.  Dr. 
Moore,  of  New  York,  will  be  my  other  and  only  guest,  in 
the  chamber  adjoining  yours,  and  he  will  accompany  you 
from  New  York  or  Elizabeth  to  my  house  in  Philadelphia, 
as  you  may  agree  :  and  I  trust  you  will  be  with  us  a  day  or 
two  before  the  29th  of  September,  rather  than  a  day  after, 
as  we  shall  be  pressed  in  respect  of  time. 

I  have  enclosed  some  printed  Proposals  for  publishing  a 
body  of  sermons,  in  4  or  5  volumes,  and  have  written  on  a 
blank  leaf  (after  the  recommendation  given  to  the  design 
by  Convention)  what  would  be  my  wish  respecting  your  ap- 
probation and  recommendation  of  it  to  your  Clergy. 

The  College  of  Philadelphia  have,  on  Dr.  White's  recom- 
mendation and  mine,  granted  the  degree  of  D.  D.  to  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Bass  and  Mr.  Parker,  which  we  thought  a  proper 
compliment  to  the  New  England  Churches.  We  are  sorry 
we  forgot  to  pay  the  same  compliment  to  the  venerable  old 
Mr.  Learning,  of  the  Connecticut  Church.  I  hope  he  will 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  365 

accompany  yon  to  Philadelphia,  and  receive  the  compliment 
from  us  in  person,  if  he  has  nowhere  else  received  it  before.1 

This  letter  had  scarcely  reached  its  destination 
when  the  Bishop  of  Connecticut  addressed  a  commu- 
nication to  Mr.  Parker,  which  was  finished  with  bet- 
ter hopes  than  it  began.  He  was  desirous  of  know- 
ing what  answer  he  had  received  to  the  request  for 
the  consecration  of  Mr.  Bass,  and  so  he  wrote  him  as 

follows  :  — 

NEW  LONDON,  August  26,  1789. 

REV.  AND  DEAR  SIR,  —  Have  you  yet  heard  the  result 
of  your  application  to  the  southern  Bishops  respecting  Mr. 
Bass's  consecration  ?  The  Rev.  Dr.  Moore,  of  New  York, 
informs  me  the  application  was  referred  to  the  Convention, 
and  directions  given  to  write  to  the  English  bishops  for  their 
opinion.  These  steps  to  me  look  queer,  and  show  a  degree 
of  thraldom,  both  to  the  Convention  and  English  Arch- 
bishops, that  ought  not  to  be.  Dr.  Moore  urges  me  very 
strongly  to  go  to  the  adjourned  Convention  at  Philadelphia, 
Sept.  29th.  And  as  they  have  removed  the  objections  I 
made,  I  should  be  much  inclined  to  go,  was  it  not  for  the 
promise  I  made  of  visiting  Portsmouth  at  that  time.  Hav- 
ing before  twice  disappointed  them,  I  know  not  how  to 
apologize  again.  Let  me  have  your  opinion  on  that  matter, 
and  also  whether  I  ought  to  go  to  Philadelphia  without  an 
official  invitation,  which  yet  I  have  not  received. 

So  far  had  I  written  when  the  post  brought  me  the  proper 
official  invitation,  with  the  various  communications  from  the 
Convention.  These,  I  suppose,  you  will  also  receive  by  the 
post.  I  have  determined  to  go  to  Philadelphia,  and  hope  to 
see  you  there.  Time  will  not  permit  me  to  add  more  than 
that  I  am 

Your  affectionate,  humble  servant, 

S.,  Bp.  Connect.2 

On  the  same  day  Bishop  Provoost  dispatched  a  let- 

1  Perry's  Historical  Notes  and  Documents,  p.  404.  2  Id.,  p.  408. 


366  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

ter  to  his  Episcopal  brother  in  Philadelphia,  and 
uttered  sentiments  that  showed  he  was  highly  dis- 
pleased with  the  course  of  the  New  York  delegates, 
and  resolutely  opposed  to  any  measures  for  concilia- 
tion and  union.  "  How  far  I  shall  be  able  in  future," 
said  he,  "  to  act  in  concert  with  the  General  Conven- 
tion of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  will  depend 
upon  the  proceedings  at  their  next  meeting.  The 
delegates  from  New  York  have  grossly  deviated  from 
their  instructions,  which  were  worded  with  their  con- 
sent, and  at  my  particular  request,  in  a  manner  that 
was  intended  to  prevent  their  accession  to  any  scheme 
of  union  which  might  be  purchased  at  the  expense  of 
the  general  constitution,  which  had  been  ratified  in 
the  Church  of  New  York  since  my  return  from  Eu- 
rope, or  which  might  endanger  the  preservation  of 
the  succession  of  our  bishops  in  the  English  line.  I 
shall  only  add  upon  the  subject  that  it  is  not  an  ab- 
solution from  the  archbishops  and  bishops  of  England 
that  will  induce  me  to  sacrifice  the  principles  upon 
which  I  first  entered  into  the  union  and  upon  which 
I  have  since  uniformly  acted." 

Bishop  White  used  gentle  efforts  to  overcome  the 
prejudices  of  Bishop  Provoost  and  reconcile  him  to 
the  movements  in  progress  for  uniting  the  Church  in 
all  the  States.  But  he  was  inflexible.  "  As  to  what 
you  style  an  implied  engagement  to  the  English  bish- 
ops," he  wrote  three  weeks  before  the  assembling 
of  the  adjourned  convention,  "  I  look  upon  it,  in  re- 
gard to  myself,  as  a  positive  one.  I  entered  into  it 
ex  ammo,  upon  principle,  and  do  not  wish  to  ask  or 
accept  a  releasement  from  it."  This  determination 
settled  the  question  about  joining  with  the  other  two 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  367 

bishops  in  consecrating  a  fourth  for  Massachusetts 
and  New  Hampshire.  He  would  not  do  it  or  unite 
in  any  consecration  until  the  complement  of  three  in 
the  English  line  had  been  filled. 

Seabury  communicated  to  Bishop  White,  the  day 
after  receiving  it,  his  most  willing  acceptance  of  the 
official  invitation,  and  said,  "  The  time  is  so  short 
that  I  fear  we  shall  not  be  able  to  get  our  dispersed 
clergy  together ;  but  everything  shall  be  done  that 
can  be  done,  and  I  presume,  on  so  sudden  an  emer- 
gency, any  little  informality  in  the  appointment  of 
their  representatives  will  be  overlooked. 

"  Accept  my  wishes  for  your  health  and  usefulness, 
and  my  acknowledgments  for  your  kind  attentions. 
Will  you  do  me  the  favor  to  acquaint  Dr.  Smith  that 
I  have  received  his  communications,  and  to  thank 
him  for  them  ?  It  is  impossible  for  me  to  write  now 
to  him,  and,  indeed,  it  is  unnecessary,  as  I  hope  so 
soon  to  have  a  personal  interview  with  him." 

A  special  meeting  of  the  clergy  of  Connecticut  was 
held  in  Stratfield  (now  Bridgeport),  September  15th, 
and  the  bishop  being  absent  the  Rev.  Dr.  Learning1 
was  chosen  president  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Jarvis  secre- 
tary. The  object  of  the  meeting  was  to  consider  the 
invitation  to  attend  the  general  convention  soon  to 
assemble  in  Philadelphia,  and  the  letters  and  docu- 
ments having  been  read  it  was  resolved,  on  motion 
of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Bowden,  to  send  clerical  delegates. 
Accordingly,  the  next  day,  Wednesday,  the  Rev. 
Messrs.  Hubbard  and  Jarvis  were  chosen  and  "  em- 
powered to  confer  with  the  General  Convention  on 
the  subject  of  making  alterations  in  the  Book  of 

1  He  received  the  degree  of  D.  D.  from  Columbia  College,  New  York, 
1789. 


368  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

Common  Prayer ; "  but  "  the  ratification  of  such 
alterations  "  was  "  expressly  reserved  to  rest  with 
the  bishop  and  clergy  of  this  Church." 

The  convention  assembled  in  Philadelphia  pursu- 
ant to  adjournment  on  the  29th  of  September,  and 
Bishop  Seabury  with  his  two  presbyters  and  the  Kev. 
-Dr.  Parker,  from  Massachusetts,  appeared  agreeably 
to  the  invitations  they  had  received,  and  produced 
their  respective  testimonials.  Before  the  subject  of 
the  proposed  union  with  the  churches  in  New  Eng- 
land, as  thus  represented,  was  taken  up,  an  unex- 
pected danger  on  the  score  of  politics  was  threatened. 
Some  laymen  had  learned  that  Bishop  Seabury  was 
in  the  receipt  from  the  British  government  of  half- 
pay  as  a  chaplain  to  a  loyal  regiment  during  the  war, 
and  they  professed  to  have  scruples  in  regard  to  the 
propriety  of  admitting  him  to  a  seat  in  the  conven- 
tion. Through  the  influence  and  private  reasoning 
of  Bishop  White,  these  scruples  were  happily  re- 
moved, and  the  next  day,  in  a  committee  of  the 
whole,  and  for  the  better  promotion  of  the  desired 
object,  it  was  resolved  that  the  general  constitution 
established  at  the  previous  meeting  is  yet  open  to 
amendment  and  alterations  by  virtue  of  the  powers 
delegated  to  this  convention.  The  third  article  of  it 
provided  that  whenever  the  bishops  of  this  Church 
numbered  three  or  more  they  should  form  a  house  of 
revision,  with  power  simply,  in  cases  of  disagreement, 
to  set  aside  the  acts  of  the  other  house  unless  by  a 
majority  of  three  fourths  of  that  body  it  should  ad- 
here to  them. 

The  deputies  from  New  England  objected  to  the 
terms  of  this  article,  and  after  "  a  full,  free,  and 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  369 

friendly  conference  "  with  a  committee  appointed  for 
the  purpose,  the  convention  modified  it  so  as  to  de- 
clare explicitly  "  the  right  of  the  bishops,  when  sit- 
ting in  a  separate  house,  to  originate  and  propose 
acts  for  the  concurrence  of  the  other  house,"  and  to 
negative  such  acts  of  the  other  house  as  might  not 
receive  their  approbation.  By  a  vote  of  four  fifths 
instead  of  three  fifths,  this  negative  was  to  be  inef- 
fectual, and  then  a  resolution  was  adopted  to  make  it 
known  to  the  several  state  .conventions  that  it  is  pro- 
posed to  consider  and  determine,  at  the  next  meet- 
ing, the  propriety  of  investing  the  house  of  bishops 
with  a  full  negative  upon  the  proceedings  of  the 
other  house. 

This  action  having  been  laid  before  Bishop  Sea- 
bury  and  the  deputies  from  the  churches  in  New 
England  for  their  approval  and  assent,  they  soon  de- 
livered, duly  subscribed,  the  following  brief  but  im- 
portant testimony :  "  We  do  hereby  agree  to  the 
Constitution  of  the  Church,  as  modified  this  day,  in 
Convention,  2d  October,  1789."  On  this  testimony 
great  results  for  the  Church  in  America  depended. 
Other  changes  in  minor  points  might  have  been  de- 
sired ;  but  it  was  not  easy,  if  advisable,  to  remove 
what  had  been  fixed  in  the  constitution  from  the  be- 
ginning, and  apparently  accepted  without  much  de- 
bate or  consideration.  The  title  Protestant  Episco- 
pal Church  was  distasteful  to  some  of  the  Connecticut 
clergy,  and  as  far  back  as  1786,  Mr.  Learning  wrote 
to  the  Rev.  Abraham  Beach  a  letter  which  is  worth 
producing  in  this  connection  as  showing  his  anxiety 
to  have  all  mistakes  avoided,  and  everything  put  on 
the  right  basis. 

24 


370  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

STRATFORD,  September  12,  1786. 

MY  DEAR  SIR, — Your  favor  of  the  28th  of  August  did 
not  come  to  hand  till  this  day.  I  wish  it  had  arrived  imme- 
diately ;  for  I  had  a  great  desire  to  have  seen  you  before 
any  of  your  Conventions ;  but  that  is  now  impossible :  the 
time  is  so  short. 

However,  I  will  communicate  to  you  a  few  observations 
which  I  did  not  intend  to  commit  to  paper.  Your  Constitu- 
tion as  it  now  is,  —  the  4th  of  July  is  to  be  observed  as  a 
day  of  Thanksgiving  forever,  for  the  liberty  we  enjoy. 
This  necessarily  implies  that  before  that  time  we  were  in  a 
state  of  slavery.  The  Bishops  of  England  would  appear  in 
a  strange  attitude  to  set  to  their  hands  that  the  King,  Lords, 
and  Commons  were  a  pack  of  tyrants  ;  and  kept  us  in  a 
state  of  slavery,  till  we  threw  off  the  yoke.  This  is  worth 
attending  to  in  season.  It  is  rny  solid  opinion  that  your 
general  Convention  will  act  wisely  to  lay  aside  even  the 
thought  of  a  day  of  Thanksgiving  on  that  account,  as  it 
will  be  an  insuperable  difficulty  in  their  way,  and  will,  if 
appointed,  in  a  little  time  be  laid  aside. 

If  you  can  inspire  the  members  that  are  to  represent  the 
State  of  N.  Y.  and  the  Jersies,  in  the  general  Convention, 
with  the  necessity  of  laying  aside  that  whimsical  appoint- 
ment, you  will  ever  be  pleased  with  your  success. 

It  must  forever  be  kept  private,  both  in  the  Southern 
States,  and  in  Connecticut,  that  you  and  I  have  corre- 
sponded upon  these  affairs,  if  we  intend,  as  I  have  no  doubt 
we  both  do,  to  promote  the  general  good  of  the  whole. 
Many  things  may  be  done  where  there  is  no  suspicion,  that 
cannot  be  effected  where  there  is. 

There  is  another  thing  your  general  Convention  ought  to 
take  into  consideration,  that  is,  the  style  they  have  given  to 
the  Church,  which  is  this  :  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 
The  Church  of  England  is  not  called  a  Protestant  Church, 
but  a  reformed  Church:  they  never  entered  any  protest 
against  the  civil  powers :  they  reformed  as  a  nation  :  it 
never  had  the  title  of  Protestant  given  to  it  by  any  sensible 
writer,  unless  he  was  a  Scotchman. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  371 

It  will  be  a  great  pity  that  we  should  commit  any  blun- 
ders of  this  sort,  at  first  setting  out,  for  posterity  to  laugh 
at,  after  we  are  forgotten  for  everything  but  the  mistakes 
which  we  committed,  and  left  behind  us  as  monuments  that 
we  wanted  proper  sagacity.  Perhaps  this  may  be  little 
thought  of,  but  if  we  commit  any  mistakes  now,  we  must 
bear  the  blame  forever.  It  actually  appears  to  me  that  your 
general  Convention  proceeded  precipitately  in  many  things ; 
or  they  wanted  old  soldiers  that  knew  the  strength  of  every 
fortification,  and  the  method  how  to  defend  it. 

I  wish  it  might  suit  your  affairs  to  come  here  the  begin- 
ning of  October,  as  in  the  middle  I  must  attend  our  General 
Assembly.     Mrs.  Learning  joins  in  love  to  Mrs.  B.  and  you. 
Am  your  sincere  friend  and  aff.  brother, 

J.  LEAMING.1 

More  than  twenty  years  later,  Dr.  Jarvis,  then  the 
Bishop  of  Connecticut,  was  writing  to  Bishop  Clag- 
gett  and  apologizing  for  not  being  able  to  attend  the 
General  Convention  which  was  to  be  held  at  Balti- 
more, in  his  diocese.  Keferring  in  this  letter  to  the 
provisions  of  the  constitution  in  regard  to  the  decla- 
ration required  of  a  person  to  be  ordained,  he  said, 
"  That  constitution,  I  confess,  has  always  appeared  to 
me  a  very  awkward  thing.  Why  could  it  not  be 
placed  with  and  in  front  of  the  canons,  and  each  ar- 
ticle make  one  canon !  The  whole  headed  by  Con- 
stitution and  Canons  of  the  reformed  instead  of  the. 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United  States  ? 
I  am  confident  such  a  head  would  be  more  consistent 
with  correct  notions  of  the  Church."  2 

After  Bishop  Seabury  and  the  Eastern  clergy  had 
taken  their  seats,  the  convention,  in  accordance  with 

1  MS.  Letter. 

2  MS.  Letter,  April  7,  1808. 


372  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

the  constitution  as  amended  and  confirmed,  sepa- 
rated into  two  houses,  —  the  bishops  withdrawing 
and  forming  one  house  and  Provoost  being  counted 
to  make  the  requisite  number,  though  unable  by  in- 
disposition to  be  present.  Thus  was  begun  a  new 
era  in  our  ecclesiastical  legislation,  and  the  records  of 
each  house,  separately  kept,  were  printed  with  the 
new,  but  now  old,  title-page,  "Journal  of  the  Pro- 
ceedings of  the  Bishops,  Clergy,  and  Laity  of  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United  States  of 
America." 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  373 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  CONVENTION,  AND  REVISION  OF  THE  LITURGY; 
HOUSE  OF  BISHOPS,  AND  REJECTION  OF  THE  ATHANASIAN  CREED; 
MISUNDERSTANDING  BETWEEN  THE  TWO  HOUSES,  AND  PRAYER 
FOR  THE  PRESIDENT  AND  ALL  IN  AUTHORITY;  CHANGES  IN  THE 
COMMUNION  OFFICE,  AND  BISHOP  SEABURY'S  INFLUENCE;  CONVO- 
CATION AT  LITCHFIELD,  AND  DOCTOR  LEAMING'S  RETIREMENT. 

A.  D.  1789-1790. 

THE  chief  business  of  the  adjourned  convention, 
after  effecting  the  union,  was  the  preparation  of  the 
Book  of  Common  Prayer,  as  now  set  forth  for  use  in 
this  Church ;  and  the  two  houses  entered  upon  it 
with  somewhat  different  views  of  proceeding.  The 
three  simple  rules  adopted  by  the  bishops  for  their 
own  government  were  drawn  by  White,  and  to  pre- 
vent all  future  discussions  he  made  the  point  of 
precedency  in  that  body  to  rest  on  the  seniority  of 
Episcopal  consecration.  Thus  Seabury  became  the 
first  president  of  the  House  of  Bishops,  and  though  a 
different  principle  was  asserted  and  followed  at  the 
next  General  Convention,  yet  the  original  rule  was 
re-adopted  in  1804,  and  has  ever  since  been  contin- 
ued in  force. 

The  two  bishops,  with  a  spirit  of  mutual  accommo- 
dation, were  disposed  to  dispatch  business  with  much 
celerity,  and  the  first  entry  in  the  journal,  after  com- 
pleting their  /organization,  was  :  "  This  house  went 


374  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

into  a  review  of  the  Morning  and  Evening  Prayer, 
and  prepared  some  proposals  on  that  subject."  The 
English  Liturgy,  altered  and  adapted  to  the  Church 
in  this  country  arid  to  the  new  form  of  civil  govern- 
ment, was  in  their  minds,  and  when  they  carne  to 
other  parts  of  the  service,  it  was  the  Litany,  the  Col- 
lects, Epistles,  and  Gospels,  and  the  order  for  the 
administration  of  the  Holy  Communion  which  they 
considered;  and  still  further,  their  minutes  on  the 
third  day  speak  of  their  "  going  into  a  review  of 
the  service  for  the  public  baptism  of  infants  and  pre- 
paring proposals  on  that  subject." 

In  the  House  of  Clerical  and  Lay  Deputies  the  ac- 
tion, whatever  it  may  have  been  really,  was  appar- 
ently different.  At  the  outset,  Dr.  Parker,  no  doubt 
in  accordance  with  the  wishes  of  the  clergy  of  Con- 
necticut and  with  his  own  as  well,  submitted  that,  in 
the  appointment  of  committees  on  the  several  depart- 
ments of  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  the  English 
book  should  be  the  basis  of  proceeding,  without  any 
reference  to  that  gotten  up  and  proposed  in  1785, 
and  which  had  not  been  adopted.  Objections  were 
made  to  this  by  some  members,  who  contended  that 
a  Liturgy  ought  to  be  formed  without  regard  to  any 
existing  book,  but  with  liberty  to  select  from  any 
whatever  the  convention  might  deem  fit.  The  de- 
bate resulted  in  so  framing  their  resolutions  that  the 
different  committees  "  were  appointed  to  prepare  a 
Morning  and  Evening  Prayer,  to  prepare  a  Litany, 
to  prepare  a  Communion  Service,  and  the  same  in 
regard  to  the  other  departments,  instead  of  its  being 
said  to  alter  the  said  services,  which  had  been  the 
language  in  1785."  Bishop  White  called  this  "  an 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  375 

incident  ....  which  had  an  unpropitious  influence 
on  all  that  followed."  "  It. was  very  unreasonable," 
said  he,  "  because  the  different  congregations  of  the 
Church  were  always  understood  to  be  possessed  of  a 
Liturgy,  before  the  consecration  of  her  bishops,  or 
the  existence  of  her  conventions.  It  would  have 
been  thought  a  strange  doctrine  in  any  of  the  clergy, 
had  they  pretended  that  they  were  released  from  all 
obligation  to  the  use  of  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer 
by  the  Ke volution.  It  is  true  that  Dr.  Parker  had 
carried  the  matter  too  far  in  speaking  of  the  pro- 
posed book  as  a  form  of  which  they  could  know  noth- 
ing, considering  that  it  had  been  proposed  by  a  pre- 
ceding convention  from  a  majority  of  the  States."  l 

Bishop  White  evidently  felt  that  the  House  of 
Deputies  had  treated  the  book  in  an  ungracious  man- 
ner, and  it  was  natural  that  he  would  be  displeased 
when  he  thought  of  the  time  he  had  spent  upon  it, 
and  the  pains  he  had  taken  to  have  it  well  circulated 
with  a  view  to  its  amendment  and  ratification  at  this 
convention.  The  bishops  exercised  freely  their  right, 
under  the  constitution,  to  "  originate  and  propose 
acts  for  the  concurrence  of  the  House  of  Deputies," 
and  in  this  way  changes  were  avoided  which,  if  made, 
might  have  been  disastrous  to  the  Church.  It  was 
after  all  a  review  of  the  old  Liturgy  which  the  two 
houses  entered  upon  and  prosecuted  to  the  end. 

The  bishops  spent  no  time  in  speeches,  but  looked 
carefully  at  each  point  as  it  came  into  view.  With 
minds  and  characters  differently  constituted  and 
moulded,  they  were  just  the  men  to  be  brought  to- 
gether in  such  an  emergency.  One  was  frank  and 

1  Memoirs  of  P.  E.  Church,  p.  147. 


376  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

fearless  in  adhering  to  his  settled  convictions,  and 
resolute  in  upholding  the  faith  and  preserving  the 
ancient  landmarks  of  the  Church,  but  not  so  self- 
willed  and  tenacious  of  his  opinions  that  he  could  not 
gracefully  relinquish  them  where  no  essential  princi- 
ple was  involved.  The  other  had  a  less  rigid  temper- 
ament, and  from  natural  kindness  of  heart,  and  per- 
haps personal  inclination,  he  might  have  been  led 
without  this  check  to  yield  to  the  pressure  of  cir- 
cumstances at  the  expense  of  a  true  conservatism. 
Bishop  White,  however,  was  not  more  gentle  and 
generous  than  capable  of  appreciating  the  character 
of  his  Episcopal  brother,  and  the  testimony  which  he 
bore  long  years  after  was  that  he  "  had  ever  retained 
a  pleasing  recollection  of  the  interviews  of  that  period, 
and  of  the  good  sense  and  Christian  temper  of  the 
person  with  whom  he  was  associated." l 

It  is  not  the  place  in  these  pages  to  give  a  minute 
history  of  the  changes  in  the  Book  of  Common 
Prayer,  adopted  and  set  forth  at  this  convention. 
But  the  most  important,  and  those  in  which  Bishop 
Seabury  was  particularly  concerned,  should  be  noted. 
He  was  in  favor  of  retaining  the  Athanasian  Creed, 
and  thought  that  without  it  the  Church  would  be 
liable  to  the  introduction  of  the  errors  which  it  was 
designed  to  oppose.  Bishop  White  maintained  a 
contrary  opinion,  and  though  avowing  his  intention 
never  to  read  it  himself,  he  was  willing,  "  on  the 
principle  of  accommodation  to  the  many  who  were 
reported  to  desire  it,  especially  in  Connecticut,"  to 
amend  the  draft  sent  in  by  the  House  of  Deputies, 
and  insert  it  with  a  rubric  permitting  its  use.  But 

1  Sermon  at  the  Consecration  of  Rt.  Rev.  T.  C.  Brownell,  1819,  p.  20. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  377 

this  action  was  of  no  avail ;  for  the  amendment  was  re- 
jected in  the  other  house,  and  when  the  matter  came 
to  be  considered  in  conference  afterwards,  "  they 
would  not  allow  of  the  creed  in  any  shape,  which 
was  thought  intolerant  by  the  gentlemen  from  New 
England,  who,  with  Bishop  Seabury,  gave  it  up  with 
great  reluctance." 

An  article  in  the  Apostles'  Creed  occasioned  some 
perplexity  and  misunderstanding.  The  words,  "  He 
descended  into  hell,"  had  been  stricken  out  in  the 
"  proposed  book,"  and  the  omission  was  one  of  the 
things  which  the  English  prelates  disapproved  of  in 
their  answer  to  the  application  for  the  Episcopacy. 
At  the  convention  in  Wilmington,  which  received 
and  acted  upon  that  answer,  the  proposition  to  re- 
store the  article  occasioned  considerable  debate ;  but 
it  was  finally  accepted,  and  now  it  came  up  again  in 
the  general  review  and  assumed  a  new  shape.  The 
bishops  amended  the  form  adopted  by  the  House  of 
Deputies,  and  the  president,  on  its  being  communi- 
cated, accidentally  omitted  to  read  the  article  in  its 
full  force  with  the  explanatory  rubric.  As  nothing 
was  said  on  this  point  when  it  was  returned,  concur- 
rence was  taken  for  granted.  "  But  Bishop  Seabury, 
before  he  left  the  city,  conceived  a  suspicion  that 
there  had  been  a  misunderstanding.  For  on  the 
evening  before  his  departure  he  took  Bishop  White 
aside  from  company,  and  mentioned  his  apprehen- 
sion, which  was  treated  as  groundless  on  ^the  full 
belief  that  it  was  so.  It  was  a  point  which  Bishop 
Seabury  had  much  at  heart,  from  an  opinion  that  the 
article  was  put  into  the  creed  in  opposition  to  the 
Apollinarian  heresy;  and  that,  therefore,  the  with- 


378  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

drawing  of  it  was  an  indirect  encouragement  of  the 
same."  No  such  opinion  was  held  by  Bishop  White ; 
but  he  was  desirous  of  retaining  the  article  for  the 
sake  of  peace  and  good  faith  to  the  English  Church, 
with  the  rubric  explaining  it  as  referring  to  the  state 
of  departed  spirits  generally. 

When  the  committee1  came  together  to  prepare 
the  book  for  the  press,  all  were  greatly  surprised  to 
find  that  the  two  houses  had  entirely  misunderstood 
each  other.  "  The  question  was,  What  is  to  be  done  ? 
And  here  the  different  principles  on  which  the  busi- 
ness had  been  conducted  had  their  respective  opera- 
tion. The  committee  contended  that  the  amendment 
made  by  the  bishops  to  the  service  as  proposed  by 
their  house,  not  appearing  to  have  been  presented, 
the  service  must  stand  as  proposed  by  them,  with  the 
words  '  he  descended  into  hell '  printed  in  italics  and 
between  hooks,  and  with  a  rubric  permissory  of  the 
use  of  the  words,  '  he  went  into  the  place  of  departed 
spirits.'  On  the  contrary,  it  was  thought  a  duty  to 
maintain  the  principle  that  the  creed,  as  in  the  Eng- 
lish book,  must  be  considered  as  the  creed  of  the 
Church  until  altered  by  the  consent  of  both  houses ; 
which  was  not  yet  done.  Accordingly,  remonstrance 
was  made  against  the  printing  of  the  article  of  the 
descent  into  hell,  in  the  manner  in  which  it  appears 
in  the  book  published  at  that  time. 

"When  the  convention  afterwards  met  in  New 
York,  in  the  year  1792,  this  matter  came  in  review 

1  Rev.  Dr.  William  Smith,  Rev.  Dr.  Magaw,  Rev.  Dr.  Blackwell, 
Mr.  Hopkinson,  and  Mr.  Coxe,  all  of  Philadelphia,  were  appointed,  and 
Bishop  White,  of  the  other  house,  "  agreed  to  assist  the  committee  in 
preparing  the  book  for  publication." 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  379 

before  them ;  and  the  result  was  the  ordering  of  the 
creed  to  be  printed  in  all  future  editions,  with  the 
article  not  in  italics  and  between  hooks  as  before, 
but  with  the  rubric,  leaving  it  to  discretion  to  use  or 
to  omit  it,  or  to  use  instead  of  it  the  words  consid- 
ered by  the  rubric  as  synonymous."1 

Among  the  first  things  to  receive  attention  in  the 
revision  of  the  Liturgy  were  the  changes  in  the 
prayers  for  civil  rulers.  A  newly  constituted  govern- 
ment was  to  be  recognized,  and  care  must  be  taken  to 
make  these  prayers  conform  to  its  existence.  In  the 
"  proposed  book  "  what  is  now  "  a  prayer  for  the 
President  of  the  United  States  and  all  in  civil  author- 
ity "  was  "  a  prayer  for  our  civil  rulers,"  which  fol- 
lowed in  language  more  closely  the  corresponding 
prayer  in  the  English  Liturgy,  and  was  not  to  be 
used  when  the  Litany  was  read.  There  was  no  Pres- 
ident at  that  date,  and  hence  it  was  a  petition  for 
"  all  in  authority,  legislative,  judicial,  and  executive, 
in  these  United  States ;  "  but  in  1789  the  government 
was  settled  under  the  Federal  Constitution,  with  Gen- 
eral Washington  at  its  head,  and  the  prayer  was 
changed  accordingly,  and  "  health  and  prosperity  " 
substituted  for  "  health  and  wealth."  The  colloca- 
tion of  the  rubric  was  changed  also,  not,  it  has  been 
claimed,  by  authority  of  the  convention,  but  of  the 
committee  appointed  to  prepare  matters  for  the  press 
and  superintend  the  printing.  The  tradition  is  very 
well  authenticated  that  Dr.  Smith,  who  was  specially 
charged  with  the  publication,  deliberately  changed 
the  order,  assigning  this,  among  other  reasons,  that 
General  Washington  never  attended  church  except 

1  Memoirs  of  P.  E.  Church,  p.  151. 


380  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

in  the  morning,  and  therefore  would  never  hear  the 
prayer  unless  it  was  appointed  to  be  used  on  Sundays 
and  all  Litany  days. 

The  late  Kev.  Dr.  Samuel  Seabury,  a  grandson  of 
the  bishop,  who  inherited  his  intellectual  qualities, 
wrote  a  letter  in  the  autumn  of  1868  to  a  clergyman 
of  the  Church1  who  had  become  interested  in  the 
history  of  the  rubric,  and  an  extract  from  it  bears  so 
strongly  on  the  question  in  hand  that  the  temptation 
to  produce  it  in  this  connection  cannot  be  resisted :  — 

The  use  of  the  Collect  for  the  President  on  a  day  when 
the  Litany  is  said  is  a  palpable  violation  of  the  principles  on 
which  the  services  of  the  Prayer-Book  are  arranged. 

Moreover  the  General  Convention  which  first  put  forth 
the  Prayer-Book  never  intended  that  the  said  Collect  should 
be  used  on  a  Litany  day.  My  father  more  than  once  told 
me  that  when  the  Prayer-Book  was  first  printed  he  and 
others  were  examining  it  in  the  Bishop's  (Seabury)  parlor, 
the  Bishop  walking  up  and  down  the  room  at  the  time  that 
he  or  some  one  of  the  company  expressed  surprise  that  the 
Litany  did  not  come  in  at  its  old  and  proper  place ;  that  his 
father  (the  bishop)  told  them  that  it  did  so  come  in,  and 
that  the  Collect  for  the  President  was  not  directed  to  be 
used  when  the  Litany  was  used ;  that  they  then  showed 
him  the  book,  that  he  looked  at  it  and  gave  a  tremendous 
scowl  and  said  not  a  word. 

The  fact  is  that  the  Collect  was,  I  believe,  foisted  into 
the  present  place  by  the  Whig  Dr.  Smith,  who  was  on  the 
committee  of  Publication,  contrary  to  the  intention  of  and 
order  of  the  Convention. 

I  have  often  mentioned  this  circumstance  and  I  thought  it 
well  to  give  it  in  writing. 

The  surprise  and  disapprobation  of  Bishop  Seabury  at  the 

1  Rev.  James  A.  Bolles,  D.  D.,  then  rector  of  the  Church  of  the  Ad- 
vent, Boston,  who  has  kindly  furnished  me  a  copy. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  381 

time  are  undoubted.  That  the  Collect  was  smuggled  in  by 
the  Committee  is  perhaps  less  certain,  though  to  my  mind  it 
hardly  admits  of  a  doubt. 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  truth  in  regard  to 
the  original  collocation  of  the  rubric,  the  action  of 
the  General  Convention  in  1792  fixed  it,  and  author- 
ized anew  the  prayer  itself.1  "  On  the  subject  of  the 
Prayer  Book/'  says  Bishop  White,  writing  in  his  Me- 
moirs of  this  session,  "  there  was  nothing  which 
could  properly  come  before  the  convention  without 
another  review,  and  this  was  not  intended,  except  the 
seeing  that  the  book  had  been  properly  executed. 
In  the  correcting  of  anything  amiss  touching  this 
matter,  there  could  be  no  ground  of  difference  except 
in  the  article  of  the  descent  into  hell,  which  had  been 
settled  as  already  related,  and  the  subject  of  the 
exclusive  copyright  of  the  book,  which  had  been 
granted  by  the  committee,  in  order  to  render  the 
book  the  cheaper,  and  to  raise  a  small  sum  for  a 
charitable  use."  So  far  as  the  copyright  was  con- 
cerned, the  action  taken  was  generally  censured,  and 
therefore  reversed.  But  a  joint  committee  was  "  ap- 
pointed to  compare  the  printed  edition  of  the  Com- 
mon Prayer  Book  with  the  original  acts  of  the  last 
General  Convention  where  they  may  judge  it  neces- 
sary, and  to  adopt  a  mode  of  authenticating  the 

1  A  good  anecdote  will  serve  the  purpose  of  illustration,  told  on  the 
authority  of  the  late  Rev.  Dr.  Jarvis,  son  of  Bishop  Jarvis,  who  was  a 
member  of  the  convention  of  1789.  Bishop  Seabury  desired  to  retain  the 
words  "in  health  and  wealth;"  Bishop  White  insisted  on  changing 
"  wealth  "  into  "prosperity."  At  dinner,  Bishop  Seabury  said  to  Mrs. 
White,  "  Hereafter,  I  suppose  I  must  address  your  husband  as  Bishop 
of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  the  Common  —  prosperity  of  Penn- 
sylvania. ' ' 


382  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

book  by  some  certain  standard,"  and  among  those 
composing  this  committee  on  the  part  of  the  House 
of  Deputies  were  the  Rev.  Dr.  Magaw  and  Rev.  Mr. 
Jarvis,  members  of  the  convention  of  1789,  and  from 
the  other  house  were  Seabury  and  White,  the  two 
bishops  present  when  the  revision  was  made,  and 
who  acted  with  so  much  wisdom  and  Christian  har- 
mony. It  is  fair  to  presume  that  they  looked 
sharply  for  errors,  and  only  consented  to  those  things 
in  the  Prayer  Book  wrhich  had  been  approved  in  the 
first  instance,  and  were  now,  with  their  sanction,  to 
be  re-affirmed.  At  least,  they  did  not  judge  it  neces- 
sary to  meddle  with  the  arrangement  of  the  "  prayer 
for  the  President  of  the  United  States  and  all  in  civil 
authority,"  and  both  bishops  conformed  to  the  rubric 
in  their  own  practice. 

The  distinctive  feature  of  the  American  Liturgy 
which  bears  the  impress  of  Bishop  Seabury  is  in  the 
Order  for  the  administration  of  the  Holy  Communion. 
He  regarded  it  as  a  grand  defect  in  the  English  of- 
fice that  there  was  not  a  more  formal  oblation  of  the 
elements  as  well  as  an  invocation  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
to  bless  and  sanctify  them,  and  he  advocated  a 
change  in  this  respect  with  great  earnestness.  His 
own  office,1  framed  after  the  model  of  the  Scotch  in 
pursuance  of  the  compact  entered  into  at  Aberdeen, 
had  been  in  use  in  Connecticut  for  three  years,  and 
the  clergy  had  become  familiar  with  it  and  attached 
to  its  provisions.  But  independent  of  these  consid- 
erations, he  wished  to  effect  the  changes  in  the  Eng- 
lish office  on  doctrinal  grounds,  and  to  restore  to  the 
service  of  the  American  Church  those  parts  which 
had  been  omitted  in  the  second  book  of  Edward  VI. 

1  Appendix  D. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  383 

"  Bishop  Seabury's  attachment  to  these  changes/' 
says  White  in  his  Memoirs,  "  may  be  learned  from 
the  following  incident.  On  the  morning  of  the  Sun- 
day which  occurred  during  the  session  of  the  conven- 
tion, the  author  wished  him  to  consecrate  the  ele- 
ments. This  he  declined.  On  the  offer  being  again 
made  at  the  time  when  the  service  was  to  begin  he 
still  declined,  and  smiling,  added,  '  To  confess  the 
truth,  I  hardly  consider  the  form  to  be  used  as 
strictly  amounting  to  a  consecration.'  The  form  was, 
of  course,  that  used  heretofore ;  the  changes  not  hav- 
ing taken  effect." 

The  office  which  he  set  forth  in  his  own  diocese, 
however,  followed  not  the  arrangement  in  the  first 
book  of  Edward  but  that  of  the  later  communion  office 
of  the  Scottish  Episcopal  Church.  In  the  first  book, 
the  collocation  was  the  Invocation,  the  Institution, 
and  the  Oblation.  In  the  Scottish  office  as  in  our 
present  order,  the  words  of  Institution  and  Invoca- 
tion are  transposed,  and  placed  before  and  after  Obla- 
tion, —  a  significant  and  becoming  change  which  may 
be  regarded  as  a  protest  against  the  Komish  dogma 
of  transubstantiation  and  propitiatory  sacrifice.  So 
in  the  service  of  Bishop  Seabury  the  Invocation  fol- 
lowed the  Oblation  of  the  Elements,  and  began  with 
a  humble  entreaty  to  the  merciful  Father  that  He 
would  vouchsafe  to  bless  and  sanctify  with  His  word 
and  Holy  Spirit  His  gifts  and  creatures  of  bread  and 
wine  "  that  they  may  become  the  body  and  blood  of 
Thy  most  dearly  beloved  Son." l  With  the  exception 

1  "There  is  no  ground  from  Christ's  words  to  infer  any  tran  sub- 
stantiation, or  conversion  of  the  bread  and  wine  into  his  natural  body 
and  blood,  by  his  pronouncing  the  words,  '  This  is  my  body  ;  this  is  my 


384  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

of  the  words  quoted,  the  whole  prayer  of  consecration 
was  the  same  in  that  office  as  in  the  one  adopted, 
and  which  is  now  a  part  of  our  Book  of  Common 
Prayer. 

It  has  been  said  that  when  the  proposition  to  alter 
the  English  ritual  and  insert  the  Scottish  form  of 
consecration  was  sent  to  the  other  house,  some  sur- 
prise was  manifested  and  signs  of  discontent  began 
to  appear ;  but  the  president,  Dr.  Smith,  rose,  took 
the  paragraph  and  read  it  so  emphatically  and  so 
admirably,  commenting  as  he  proceeded,  that  all  op- 
position was  in  a  measure  silenced,  and  the  change 
acquiesced  in  with  little  or  no  debate.  Bishop  White 
did  not  share  in  the  feeling  of  his  Episcopal  brother 
that  the  English  service,  as  it  stood,  was  essentially 
defective,  but  he  recognized  the  beauty  and  impres- 
siveness  of  the  Scottish  form,  and  saw  in  it  no  super- 
stition. Writing  afterwards  of  what  was  done,  he 
said  :  "  The  restoring  of  those  parts  of  the  service 
by  the  American  Church  has  since  been  objected  to 
by  some  few  among  us.  To  show  that  a  superstitious 

blood,'  over  them.  His  natural  body  and  blood  were  then  present,  his 
body  unbroken,  his  blood  unshed,  and  absolutely  distinct  from  the  bread 
and  wine ;  for  in  his  natural  hands  he  held  the  bread  and  the  cup,  even 
when  he  declared  them  to  be  his  body  and  blood  then  given  for  the  re- 
mission of  sins.  And  if  those  words,  when  pronounced  by  Christ,  did 
not  change  the  bread  and  the  cup  into  the  natural  body  and  blood  of 
Christ,  no  such  effect  is  to  be  expected  from  them  when  pronounced  by 
a  priest. 

"That  there  was,  however,  a  great  and  real  change  made  in  the 
bread  and  the  cup  by  our  Saviour's  blessing,  and  thanksgiving,  and 
prayer,  cannot  be  doubted.  Naturally  they  were  only  bread  and  wine, 
and  not  the  body  and  blood  of  Christ.  When  he  had  blessed  them,  he 
declared  them  to  be  his  body  and  blood.  They  were,  therefore,  by  his 
blessing  and  word,  made  to  be  what  by  nature  they  were  not."  Sea- 
bury's  Discourses,  vol.  i.,  pp.  148,  149. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  385 

sense  must  have  been  intended,  they  have  laid  great 
stress  on  the  printing  of  the  words,  '  which  we  now 
offer  unto  thee,'  in  a  different  character  from  the  rest 
of  the  prayers.  But  this  was  mere  accident.  The 
bishops,  being  possessed  of  the  form  used  in  the 
Scotch  Episcopal  Church,  which  they  had  altered  in 
some  respects,  referred  to  it  to  save  the  trouble  of 
copying.  But  the  reference  was  not  intended  to 
establish  any  particular  manner  of  printing,  and  ac- 
cordingly, in  all  the  editions  of  the  Prayer  Book  since 
the  first,  the  aforesaid  words  have  been  printed  in  the 
same  character  with  the  rest  of  the  prayer,  without 
any  deviation  from  the  original  appointment." 

The  General  Convention,  having  finished  its  busi- 
ness, adjourned  on  the  evening  of  the  16th  of  Octo- 
ber, and  Bishop  Seabury  and  his  delegates  returned 
to  Connecticut,  and  awaited  the  publication  of  the 
revised  Prayer  Book  before  submitting  the  changes 
to  a  convocation  of  the  clergy.  The  English  Lit- 
urgy, with  the  omissions  and  substitutions  agreed 
upon  at  Middle  town  in  1785,  and  with  the  additions 
recommended  at  Derby  the  next  year,  was  meanwhile 
continued  in  use.  The  original  changes,  which  have 
not  been  particularly  mentioned,  were  few  in  number, 
arranged  under  eight  heads,  and  consisted,  first,  in 
making  the  suffrage  after  the  Creed  in  the  Morning 
and  Evening  Prayer,  that  read,  "  0  Lord,  save  the 
king,"  to  be  "  0  Lord,  save  the  Church."  The  four 
petitions  in  the  Litany  concerning  the  king  and  royal 
family  were  omitted,  and  in  the  twentieth  petition,  for 
"  Lords  of  Council  and  all  the  Nobility,"  were  sub- 
stituted "  Governors  and  Rulers  of  this  State  ;  "  and 
in  the  twenty-first,  for  "  Magistrates,"  "  Judges  and 

25 


386  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

all  inferior  Magistrates."  Every  prayer  that  related 
to  the  king  and  his  government  was  either  omitted 
or  changed  to  suit  the  circumstances,  and  the  obser- 
vation of  all  days  connected  with  the  memory  of 
special  mercies  and  deliverances  in  the  realm  of  Great 
Britain  was  to  be  discontinued.  The  child  was  taught 
in  the  Catechism  that  his  duty  to  his  neighbor  was 
not  "  to  honor  and  obey  the  king,"  but  "  to  honor 
and  obey  my  civil  Rulers." 

The  manner  of  introducing  these  changes  was  by 
a  printed  pastoral,  addressed  to  the  clergy,  and  "  done 
at  New  London,  August  12th,  1785."  It  began  thus  : 
"  SAMUEL,  by  divine  permission,  Bishop  of  the 
Episcopal  Church  in  the  State  of  Connecticut,  to  the 
clergy  of  the  said  Church,  GREETING.  It  having 
pleased  Almighty  God  that  the  late  British  Colony 
of  Connecticut  should  become  a  free,  sovereign,  and 
independent  State,  as  it  now  is,  some  alterations  in 
the  Liturgy  and  offices  of  our  Church  are  necessary 
to  be  made  to  accommodate  them  to  the  civil  Consti- 
tution of  the  country  in  which  we  live,  for  the  peace, 
security,  and  prosperity  of  which,  both  as  good  sub- 
jects and  faithful  Christians,  it  is  our  duty  constantly 
to  pray.  —  WE,  the  Bishop  aforesaid,  have  thought 
fit,  by  and  with  the  advice  and  assistance  of  such  of 
our  clergy  as  we  have  had  opportunity  of  consulting, 
to  issue  this  INJUNCTION,  hereby  authorizing  and  re- 
quiring you,  and  every  one  of  you,  the  Presbyters 
and  Deacons  of  the  Church  above  mentioned,  in  the 
celebration  of  Divine  Service,  to  make  the  following 
alterations  in  the  Liturgy  and  offices  of  our  Church." l 

It  is  not  known  that  there  was  any  variation  by 

1  Original  printed  copy. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  387 

the  clergy  of  Connecticut  from  the  terms  of  this  in- 
junction, and  from  the  additions  to  the  Liturgy  rec- 
ommended at  the  convocation  in  Derby,  September, 
1786.  But  when  the  revised  Prayer  Book  came  in, 
and  was  accepted  by  the  Church  in  all  the  States,  a 
change  commenced.  Then  a  new  order  of  things  was 
to  be  observed,  and  Connecticut  was  expected  to  re- 
ceive and  use  the  Liturgy,  which  she,  by  her  Bishop 
and  delegates,  had  helped  to  prepare,  perfect,  and 
set  forth. 

The  first  convocation  of  the  clergy,  after  the  ad- 
journment of  the  General  Convention,  was  held  at 
Litchfield  on  the  2d  of  June,  1790.  Fifteen  were 
present  besides  the  Bishop,  and  "  by  particular  de- 
sire, divine  service  was  attended  at  the  Presbyterian 
meeting-house."  The  sermon  was  preached  by  Bishop 
Seabury,  and  the  Kev.  Truman  Marsh  was  advanced 
to  the  priesthood.  The  secretary  was  directed  to 
enter  the  minutes  of  proceedings  in  a  blank  book 
to  be  provided  for  that  purpose,  and  to  produce 
the  same  at  each  meeting  of  the  convocation.  The 
next  day  the  constitution  and  canons  of  the  Church, 
formed  by  the  late  General  Convention  at  Philadel- 
phia, were  read  and  briefly  examined,  and  the  further 
consideration  of  them  deferred  till  the  26th  of  August, 
to  which  time  the  convocation  adjourned,  to  meet  in 
Newtown.  Rules  and  canons  for  regulating  the  dis- 
cipline of  the  Church  in  Connecticut  were  necessary, 
and  the  Rev.  Dr.  Learning,  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Jarvis, 
Mansfield,  and  Hubbard  were  appointed  with  instruc- 
tions to  have  them  in  readiness  to  present  at  the  ad- 
journed meeting. 

Dr.  Learning  had  worked  faithfully  and  unceasingly 


388  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

to  effect  a  union  of  the  Church  in  this  country,  and 
he  was  now  prepared  to  seek  in  retirement  the  rest 
and  quiet  which  his  age  and  bodily  infirmities  invited, 
and  to  watch,  during  the  little  time  that  was  left  him, 
the  progress  of  a  communion  for  which  he  had  suf- 
fered, written,  and  prayed  so  much.  He  relinquished 
his  charge  at  Stratford,  in  1790,  having  held  it  for 
six  years,  and  he  is  not  again  reported  as  present  and 
participating  in  any  of  the  convocations  or  conven- 
tions of  the  Church  in  Connecticut.  He  lived  on  into 
the  present  century,  and,  as  one  who  had  the  oppor- 
tunity of  knowing  his  habits  in  his  last  days  said  of 
him,  he  "  spent  most  of  his  time  in  his  own  room,  and 
never  entertained  his  younger  auditors  with  stirring 
tales  of  his  earlier  manhood."  He  died  in  New  Haven, 
September  15,  1804,  and  his  controversial  and  theo- 
logical works  are  his  best  monument. 

As  the  time  for  the  adjourned  meeting  drew  near 
intelligence  came  from  Bishop  White  that  the  Prayer 
Books  would  not  be  bound  soon  enough  for  that  date, 
and  therefore  the  convocation  was  postponed,  by  di- 
rection of  Bishop  Seabury,  to  the  last  day  of  Septem- 
ber. It  was  important  to  have  in  hand  the  printed 
copies,  that  the  clergy  might  examine  them,  and  be 
prepared  when  they  came  together  to  ratify  or  reject 
the  changes  which  had  been  made.  The  question  to 
be  considered  was  a  serious  one,  and  signs  of  opposi- 
tion already  appeared  which  might  end  in  a  trouble- 
some disaffection  among  the  laity.  They  had  stood 
fast  by  the  old  Liturgy,  and  feared  more  than  they 
welcomed  the  prospect  of  a  new  Prayer  Book. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABUEY.  389 


CHAPTEE  XXII. 

CONVOCATION  IN  NEWTOWN,  AND  RATIFICATION  OF  THE  PRAYER 
BOOK;  PROTEST  OF  REV.  JAMES  SAYRK,  AND  USE  OF  THE  NICEXE 
CREED;  DR.  SEABURY  DECLARED  BISHOP  IN  RHODE  ISLAND,  AND 
LETTERS  TO  LAYMEN  ;  DR.  COKE  AND  HIS  PROPOSITION  ;  OFFI- 
CIAL VISITATION,  AND  JOURNEY  TO  PORTSMOUTH  ;  PUBLICATION 
OF  SERMONS,  AND  CONVOCATION  AT  WATERTOWN  ;  PARISH  IN 
STRATFORD,  AND  LETTER  TO  DR.  DIBBLEE. 

A.  D.   1790-1792. 

THE  convocation  met  at  Newtown,  September  30, 
according  to  the  postponement,  and  resumed  the  con- 
sideration of  the  constitution  and  canons  which  was 
begun  at  Litchfield.  Bishop  Seabury  and  three  of 
the  clergy  arrived  in  the  afternoon  of  the  second 
day,  making  eighteen  in  all  who  attended,  —  a  num- 
ber equal  to  that  of  the  clerical  deputies  to  the  Gen- 
eral Convention  which  revised  and  adopted  the  Book 
of  Common  Prayer.  The  alterations  were  read  and 
examined,  and  then  the  whole  question  of  approving 
them,  and  accepting  and  ratifying  the  constitution, 
was  put  in  these  words :  "  Whether  we  confirm  the 
doings  of  our  Proctors  in  the  General  Convention  at 
Philadelphia  on  the  second  day  of  October,  1789?" 
It  was  decided  in  the  affirmative  by  the  votes  of  all 
the  members  present  except  that  of  the  Kev.  James 
Sayre,  who  entered  his  solemn  protest  against  the 
signature  of  the  constitution  and  the  action  of  the 


390  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

convocation,  and  at  his  desire,  and  by  order  of  the 
clergy,  it  was  recorded  in  full  on  the  journal.  The 
reasons  alleged  in  this  protest  were  that  the  constitu- 
tion as  signed  and  approved  was  repugnant  to  the 
true  principles  of  Episcopal  government ;  that  it 
would  be  found  disagreeable  and  distasteful  to  num- 
bers of  good  Christians,  late  members  of  the  Church 
of  England  in  Connecticut ;  and  that  it  put  in  peril 
all  the  sacred  matters  of  the  Church,  her  doctrines, 
discipline,  liturgy,  sacraments,  rites,  and  offices. 

Very  little  importance  was  attached  to  these  rea- 
sons by  the  bishop  and  clergy,  but  the  end,  as  will  be 
seen  hereafter,  was  not  when  Mr.  Sayre  the  next 
morning  withdrew  and  left  the  convocation.  In  the 
remainder  of  the  proceedings  there  was  entire  har- 
mony, and  the  chief  thing  to  be  determined  was  the 
mode  of  introducing  the  constitution  and  canons  and 
liturgy  into  the  several  parishes.  It  was  finally 
agreed  that  each  of  the  clergy  might  adopt  that 
method  which  should  appear  to  him  the  most  eligi- 
ble, but  that  in  the  use  of  the  new  Prayer  Book 
there  should  be  as  much  uniformity  as  possible,  and 
for  this  purpose  as  near  an  approach  to  the  old  Lit- 
urgy as  a  compliance  with  the  rubrics  of  the  new 
would  permit. 

The  experience  of  a  year  revealed  diversity  of 
practice  and  a  disinclination  in  some  instances  to  de- 
part from  the  old  ways.  When  the  clergy  met  in 
convocation  the  next  October,  the  only  action  bear- 
ing on  this  subject  was  a  formal  vote  that  "in  the  use 
of  the  Common  Prayer  Book,  we  will  use  the  Nicene 
Creed  on  Communion  Sundays,"  —  a  usage  which  has 
been  perpetuated  in  Connecticut,  and  that  follows 


OF    SAMUEL   SEABURY.  391 

the  spirit  of  both  the  Scotch  and  English  ritual.  At 
this  convocation  a  standing  committee  was  appointed, 
as  required  by  the  sixth  canon  of  the  General  Con- 
vention, and  publicity  ordered  to  be  given  to  the  acts 
relative  to  the  establishment,  at  the  meeting  in  New- 
town,  of  a  college  of  doctors,  to  "  be  considered  the 
Bishop's  council  "  and  to  be  consulted  in  any  emer- 
gency that  might  arise.  The  first  four  doctors  were 
the  Rev.  Messrs.  Dibblee,  Mansfield,  Hubbard,  and 
Jarvis,  but  for  some  reason  the  scheme  was  unpopu- 
lar, and  the  body  was  not  continued  by  "  the  instal- 
ment" of  new  doctors. 

The  bishop  needed  the  advice  and  help  of  his  best 
clergy  to  bring  all  the  parishes  into  a  full  and  cordial 
adoption  of  the  changes  which  had  been  made,  and 
to  give  peace  and  quiet  where  discontent  and  un- 
easiness prevailed.  Not.  only  was  he  called  upon  to 
exercise  his  Episcopal  influence  in  Connecticut,  but 
his  interposition  was  sought  in  parochial  feuds  and 
difficulties  outside.  There  was  no  other  bishop  in 
New  England,  and  it  was  natural  to  flee  to  him  for 
guidance  and  counsel  when  troubles  sprung  up  be- 
tween a  minister  and  his  people  which  they  could  not 
amicably  settle  among  themselves.  By  this  time  he 
had  jurisdiction  in  Rhode  Island,  for  "  in  1790  the 
churches  in  Newport,  Providence,  and  Bristol,  met  in 
convention  and  declared  the  Right  Rev.  Samuel  Sea- 
bury,  D.  D.,  Bishop  of  Connecticut,  Bishop  of  the 
Church  in  this  State."1  He  had  already  been  asked 
to  interpose  his  advice  in  the  matter  of  settling  the 
Rev.  William  Smith,  the  younger,  at  Newport.  Mr. 
Smith  was  in  charge  of  the  church  in  Narragansett, 

1  Updike's  History  of  the  Narragansett  Church,  p.  406. 


392  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

and  in  May,  1789,  was  invited  to  visit  Trinity  Church 
every  other  week,  an  invitation  which  he  accepted 
with  the  consent  of  his  own  parish,  and  the  result 
was  a  call,  in  the  ensuing  December,  to  become  the 
rector,  which  he  also  accepted.  Three  gentlemen, 
Messrs.  Samuel  Freebody,  Thomas  Freebody,  and 
Benjamin  Gardiner,  were  not  pleased  with  the  pros- 
pect, and  attempted  to  frustrate  the  connection. 
The  judicious  letter  which  follows  was  the  first  from 
Bishop  Seabury  in  reply  to  their  importunities. 

NEW  LONDON,  Feb.  3rd,  '90. 

GENTLEMEN,  — .1  am  very  sorry  to  find,  by  your  letter  of 
Jan.  25th,  that  any  uneasiness  has  arisen  in  your  Church,  on 
account  of  the  settlement  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Smith,  or  on  any 
other  account.  As  that  matter  had  been  so  long  in  agita- 
tion, I  had  pleased  myself  with  the  hope  that  all  animosities 
and  discords,  which  had  long  perplexed  the  congregation, 
would  escape  and  be  forgotten ;  and  that  the  happy  time 
would  come,  when  you  would  all  worship  God  together,  in 
unity  of  spirit,  in  the  bond  of  peace,  and  in  righteousness 
of  life.  Whose  the  fault  is  that  this  is  not  the  case  I  know 
not.  But  certainly  a  grievous  fault  there  is  somewhere. 
God  forbid  that  I  should  decline  to  promote  peace  and  unity 
amongst  you,  by  all  reasonable  means  that  are  within  my 
power.  You  will  recollect  that  my  best  endeavors  were  un- 
successful in  the  case  of  Mr.  Sayre,1  and  I  then  determined 
with  myself  not  to  intermeddle  in  such  a  case  again,  unless 

1  The  Rev.  James  Sayre,  who  entered  upon  his  duties  as  minister  of 
Trinity  Church,  Newport,  October,  1786.  The  congregation  came  to 
an  open  rupture  with  him  in  1788,  and  judged  from  his  conversation  that 
he  would  never  consent  to  any  plan  for  establishing  the  union  of  the 
Episcopal  Church  in  America  if  the  Liturgy  of  the  Church  of  England 
was  not  entirely  adopted,  except  in  the  prayers  for  the  King.  He  after- 
wards removed  to  Connecticut  and  succeeded  the  venerable  Dr.  Learn- 
ing, at  Stratford,  where  he  was  officiating  when  he  read  his  u  protest  " 
before  the  convocation  in  Newtown. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  393 

on  positive  assurance  that  due  regard  would  be  paid  to  my 
opinion.  And  to  my  opinion,  it  is  unreasonable  that  Mr. 

S should  be  obliged  to  submit,  and  no  such  obligation 

lie  on  you.  Besides,  Mr.  S is  not  the  only  person  con- 
cerned in  this  matter :  the  Vestry  and  Congregation  are  con- 
cerned in  it,  and  they  most  certainly  ought  to  have  the  priv- 
ilege of  explaining,  and  justifying,  if  they  can,  their  own 
conduct.  Unless  they  and  you  request  my  interference,  and 
will  promise  to  regard  and  abide  by  the  decision,  you  must 
see  the  impropriety  of  my  taking  any  step  in  it,  further 
than  my  earnest  exhortation  to  peace  and  unity,  and  my 
prayers  to  God  to  incline  the  hearts  of  you  all  thereto. 
There  is  a  sentiment  with  which  your  letter  ends,  which 

hurts  me  exceedingly  —  it  intimates  that  unless  Mr.  S 

is  removed,  you  must  withdraw  from  Church,  and  go  some- 
where else,  or  stay  at  home.  Why,  my  dear  gentlemen,  did 
you  ask  me  to  interfere  after  you  had  taken  your  own  reso- 
lution ?  But  this  is  not  what  troubles  me.  It  is  to  think 
that  YOuraJtacliment  is  so  slight  to  the  Church  which  you 
have  so  long  esteemed,  as  to  be  broken  off  on  any  occasion. 
This  is  not  right ;  your  second  thoughts,  I  persuade  myself, 
will  renounce  it. 

Blessed  are  the  peacemakers,  for  they  shall  be  called  the 
children  of  God.  Be  persuaded,  my  friends,  to  pursue  the 
things  that  belong  to  peace  :  it  will  give  you  pleasure  in  re- 
flection, and  will  recommend  you  to  the  love  and  favor  of 

God.     Whereas,  if  you  persist  and  drive  away  Mr.  S , 

as  Mr.  Sayre  was  before  him,  you  will  have  no  comfort  nor 
satisfaction  in  it.  In  the  way  of  peace,  you  shall  have  every 
assurance  I  can  give,  and  everything  I  can  do  for  your  satis- 
faction. And  the  God  of  peace  be  with  you,  keep  you  in 
the  unity  of  his  Church  —  bless  and  preserve  you  in  body 
and  soul.  So  prays,  for  Christ's  sake,  your  affect'  humb. 
serv't.  S.,  Bp.  Conn. 

P.  S.  I  have  thought  with  myself,  that  as  your  letter 
affects  the  proceedings  of  the  Vestry,  they  ought  in  justice 


394  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

to  be  informed  of  its  contents.  This,  however,  I  did  not 
choose  to  do  without  your  knowledge ;  and  I  hope,  by  the 
return  of  Post,  to  have  your  permission  to  send  your  letter 
to  them. 

Three  weeks  later  he  wrote  again  to  these  gentle- 
men, and  directed  their  attention  to  points  which 
they  appear  to  have  overlooked  or  not  fully  under- 
stood. This  letter,  like  the  preceding,  he  copied  in 
his  letter-book,  from  which  both  have  been  tran- 
scribed for  these  pages. 

NEW  LONDON,  Feb.  24th,  1790. 

GENTLEMEN,  —  I  received  your  letter  in  course  of  Post, 
but  not  time  enough  to  write  to  you  by  his  return. 

I  did  not  misunderstand  the  purport  of  your  first  letter. 
I  perceived  its  intention  was  that  I  should  prevail  with  the 
Rev'd  Mr.  Smith  not  to  go  to  New  Port,  but  to  continue  at 
Narragansett.  And  my  intention  was  to  intimate  to  you, 
without  saying  so  in  direct  terms,  that  I  conceived  it  to  be 
unreasonable  for  me  to  do  so.  Apparently,  the  Vestry  and 
Congregation  of  your  Church  had  invited  him  to  be  their 
minister,  and  he  had  a  right  to  accept  their  invitation  if  he 
chose  it.  Where,  then,  would  be  the  propriety  of  my  pre- 
venting his  removal,  at  least  without  the  knowledge  of  the 
Vestry,  etc.,  who  had  invited  him  ?  Any  uneasiness  that 
subsisted  with  you  on  Mr.  Smith's  account,  I  was  ready  to 
try  to  adjust,  provided  proper  assurances  were  given  that 
my  interference  should  be  effectual  and  final,  but  not  other- 
wise. The  Vestry,  etc.,  have  certainly  a  right  to  vindicate 
their  proceedings  if  they  can  ;  and  consequently  they  ought 
to  have  an  opportunity  of  doing  so  before  they  are  deprived 
of  Mr.  Smith's  ministry.  I  did  not  say  there  had  been  no 
interruption  in  the  negotiation  with  Mr.  Smith,  though  I 
knew  of  none  at  the  time  of  my  writing.  I  understood,  and 
I  thought  from  good  authority,  that  proposals  were  made  to 
Mr.  Smith  as  long  ago  as  the  latter  end  of  the  last  spring, 
or  the  fore  part  of  the  Summer,  and  that  is  enough  to  jus- 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  395 

tify  me  in  saying  that  the  settlement  of  Mr.  Smith  had  been 
long  in  agitation. 

With  regard  to  the  prayer  which  Mr.  Smith  uses  at  the 
Consecration  of  the  Eucharist,  I  use  the  same  myself,  and 
after  October  next  it  will  be  used  throughout  the  United 
States.  Nor  can  I  see  why  the  warmest  friend  of  the  Church 
of  England  should  object  to  it.  I  have  no  wish  to  depre- 
ciate the  Church  of  England.  She  has,  I  believe,  few  faults 
—  but  the  prayer  of  Consecration  in  her  Communion  office 
is  deficient,  even  in  the  opinion  of  her  ablest  vindicators.  I 
shall  mention  but  one  deficiency  in  her  Consecration  prayer, 
viz :  that  it  is  not  put  up  to  the  Almighty  Father  through 
the  Mediation  of  Jesus  Christ.  I  could  mention  more,  but  I 
had  rather  conceal  than  expose  even  the  appearance  of  a 
blemish  in  a  Church  which  I  love  and  honor,  and  of  which 
I  profess  myself  a  member.  The  prayer  Mr.  Smith  uses  is 
nearly  the  same  with  that  in  Edward  VI. 's  Prayer  Book, 
composed  by  Cranmer,  Ridley,  etc.,  which  was  altered  to  its 
^present  form  to  please  the  Presbyterians  of  Geneva,  "Ger- 
many,  and  England,  who  gave  encouragement  that  they 
would  come  into  the  Church  on  that  ground:  but  were  not 
as  good  as  their  word.  I  do  not  speak  by  guess  when  I  say 
that  a  great  number  of  the  Clergy  and  Laity  in  England 
would  rejoice  to  have  the  same  prayer,  which  you  complain 
of,  in  the  English  book ;  and  whenever  it  shall  please  God 
that  they  shall  have  another  reform  of  the  Prayer  Book,  it 
will  most  certainly  take  place.  Let  me  again  recommend 
peace  and  amity  and  brotherly  love.  And  I  hope  you  will 
not  turn  a  deaf  ear  to  my  entreaties.  You  will  find  satisfac- 
tion in  nothing  else.  You  may  make  a  party,  and  keep  your 
Congregation  divided  and  uneasy,  —  and  what  will  you  get 
by  it  ?  —  no  pleasure,  nor  comfort,  nor  credit.  Your  late 
divisions  have  given  your  Church  no  good  character,  —  for 
God's  sake,  let  them  be  healed.  The  congregation,  I  am 
sure,  would  rejoice  to  be  at  unity  with  you,  and  on  terms  no 
ways  dishonorable  to  you.  God  give  you  peace,  my  friends, 
here  and  hereafter.  Your  affectionate 

S.,  Bp.  Connect. 


396  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

Bishop  Seabury,  while  wishing  to  be  on  friendly 
terms  with  Christians  of  other  denominations,  was  not 
disposed  to  sacrifice  principle  to  charity.  He  did  not 
believe  that  anything  would  be  gained  in  the  end  for 
good  neighborhood  —  much  less  for  the  true  interests 
of  the  Church  —  by  mixing  services,  and  he  was 
quite  unwilling  to  encourage  an  infraction  of  estab- 
lished rules  for  the  sake  of  pleasing  ministers  who 
assumed  a  roving  commission  to  preach.  The^  vestry 
of  the  parish  at  Poquetannock,  near  Norwich,  submit- 
ted to  him  folTns"15pIm61i  asTo  the  pro- 
priety of  allowing  the  use  of  their  church  on  week 
days  to  ministers  not  Episcopally  ordained,  and  the 
answer  given  was  explicit. 

NEW  LONDON,  Sep.  l%th,  1791. 

GENTLEMEN,  —  Mr.  Ebenezer  Punderson  has  informed  me 
that  there  are  some  Ministers,  not  Episcopally  ordained,  who 
are  desirous  to  preach  in  your  Church  on  week-days,  when 
it  is  unoccupied ;  and  that,  though  the  Generality  of  your 
Congregation  are  willing  that  their  inclination,  in  this  re- 
spect, should  be  complied  with,  that  good  neighborhood  may 
be  preserved,  yet  you  wish  to  have  my  opinion  with  regard 
to  the  propriety  of  the  measure  ;  I  am,  therefore,  to  acquaint 
you,  That,  though  it  will  always  EeTaT  pleasure  to  me,  when 
it  can  be  done  consistently  with  duty,  to  gratify  your  incli- 
nations, and  the  inclinations  of  those  who  wish  to  have  the 
use  of  your  Church,  with  whom  it  is  my  desire  to  keep  up 
the  best  terms  of  good  neighborhood  and  charity,  yet,  in  the 
present  case,  to  have  the  Church  opened  for  public  worship 
and  preaching,  to  any  but  Clergymen  in  Episcopal  Orders,  is 
against  the  Rules  and  Constitution  of  the  Episcopal  Church, 
of  which  you  profess  to  be  members,  and  in  unity  with  which 
you  will  always,  I  hope,  think  it  your  duty  to  continue. 

Commending  you,  Gentlemen,  to  the  protection  and  bless- 
ing of  Almighty  God ;  beseeching  him  to  preserve  you  and 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABUKY.  397 

the  Congregation  to  which  you  belong,  in  the  unity  of  his 
Church,  blameless,  unto  the  coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
I  remain  your  affec.  Pastor  and  very  humble  serv't. 

S.,  Bp.  Connect. 

In  an  "  Address  to  ministers  and  congregations  of 
the  Presbyterian  and  Independent  persuasions  in  the 
United  States  of  America/'  printed  in  1790,  Bishop 
Seabury  made  a  plea  for  union  and  invited  them,  as 
they  had  departed  from  the  Church  and  created  a 
schism,  to  take  the  first  steps  in  the  way  of  return. 
This,  he  claimed,  would  not  be  giving  up  the  religion 
of  their  forefathers,  —  not  even  of  their  New  Eng- 
land forefathers,  —  but  "  only  relinquishing  those 
errors  which  they,  through  prejudice,  most  unhappily 
imbibed."  He  did  not  expect  to  escape  public  ani- 
madversion for  his  views,  but  he  was  heroic  enough 
to  meet  any  controversy  on  the  merits  of  the  cause 
of  Christian  unity.  The  address,  which  was  written 
without  authority  from  "  any  public  body  or  particu- 
lar cognizance  of  private  friends,"  closed  in  words 
that  are  quoted  to  show  his  spirit  and  determination. 

Though  my  partiality  for  the  Church  of  England  and  her 
form  of  public  worship  must  be  evident  from  what  I  have 
written,  I  am  not  so  enthusiastically  attached  to  it  as  to 
suppose  no  other  form  can  be  proper  for  public  worship,  or 
acceptable  to  God.  Some  things  in  it  might  probably  be 
changed  so  as  to  be  better  adapted  to  the  state  of  this  coun- 
try ;  and  these  alterations,  —  I  mean  not  those  only  which  its 
political  situation  requires,  —  it  is  hoped,  have  been  pru- 
dently and  cautiously  made  by  the  late  General  Convention 
of  the  Episcopal  Church  at  Philadelphia.  If  they  have  used 
their  power  discreetly,  the  Church  and  country  will  be 
under  great  obligations  to  them.  If  they  have  made  many 
needless  alterations,  much  mischief  is  to  be  dreaded.  But  a 


398  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

good  man  will  hope  for  the  best  event  in  so  important  a  con- 
cern ;  and  I  cannot  help  indulging  an  expectation  that  you, 
gentlemen,  will  attend  to  their  Book  of  Common  Prayer, 
which,  I  understand,  is  now  in  the  press,  with  the  eye  of 
candor,  and  see  whether  you  could  not  with  a  good  con- 
science adopt  the  use  of  it  in  your  public  worship.  If  you 
could,  one  great  difficulty  would  be  over.  What  gives  me 
the  more  hope  is  the  declaration  which  some  of  your  minis- 
ters are  said  to  have  made,  viz.,  that  they  could  read  the 
Liturgy  of  the  Church  of  England  in  their  assemblies,  and 

~woulcTbe  willing  to  do  so,  one  half  of  the  day,  if  the  congre- 
gation desired  it.  That  many  of  your  laity  do  decidedly  pre- 
fer the  Liturgy  of  the  Church  of  England  to  extempore  pray- 
ers, I  know  assuredly,  for  I  have  heard  them  declare  it. 
These  are  certainly  encouraging  circumstances,  and  would 
justify  some  prudent  attempts  to  introduce  that,  or  a  similar 
liturgy  into  your  public  worship.  And  though  uniformity 
in  public  worship  would  be  much  preferable  to  a  diversity 
of  liturgies  in  the  same  country,  as  it  would  be  a  greater 
security  to  the  unity  and  peace  of  the  Church,  and  to  the 
brotherly  love  and  affection  of  its  members  ;  yet  any  liturgy, 
in  which  a  due  regard  was  paid  to  the  analogy  of  the  Christ- 
lan  laith,  and  the  approved  practices  and  usages  of  the 
primitive  Church,  would  be  much  better  than  extempore 
prayer,  where  everything  is  left  to  the  prudence  and  judg- 
ment of  the  minister.  I  see  not,  however,  why  Christians 

jjhould.  break  unity  on  account  of  diversity  of  modes  of 
worship. 

It  would  be  a  great  satisfaction  to  me  to  be  able  to  join 
in  worship  and  communion  with  all  Christians  with  whom 
I  have  intercourse ;  and  I  would  do  so  occasionally  with 
you,  gentlemen,  notwithstanding  your  extempore  prayers,  as 
much  as  I  am  attached  to  forms,  were  it  not  for  two  con- 
siderations :  the  one  is,  that  I  should  thereby  depart  from 
the  unity  of  Christ's  Church,  and  become  an  abettor  of  art 
unjustifiable  separation  from  a  true  branch  of  it.  The 
other  is,  the  doubts  I  have  of  the  validity  of  the  ordination 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  399 

of  your  ministers,  and  consequently  of  the  sacraments  they 
dispense.  These  are  serious  points,  and  the  serious  consid- 
eration of  them  can  do  you  no  harm.  It  was  to  bring  you 
to  this  serious  consideration  this  address  was  written ;  it  was 
the  design,  too,  of  some  expressions  in  it  which  to  you  may 
appear  harsh.  I  repeat  it,  they  are  the  words  of  truth  and 
benevolence.  I  repeat,  also,  that  truth  fears  no  inquiry; 
and  I  add,  that  the  Church  to  which  I  belong  will  endure 
the  most  exact  scrutiny,  try  it  who  will. 

A  movement  of  great  importance,  which  was  kept 
secret  for  the  time,  was  made  in  1791.  It  was  noth- 
ing less  than  a  proposition  to  reunite  the  Methodists 
in  this  country  with  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church, 
and  it  took  the  form  of  an  application  from  the  Kev. 
Dr.  Thomas  Coke,  an  Oxford  graduate,  and  a  presby- 
ter of  the  Church  of  England,  who  for  fourteen  years 
had  been  following  John  Wesley,  and,  like  him,  not 
intending  to  promote  a  separation,  which  had  now 
been  actually  accomplished.  Discovering  his  error, 
he  publicly  recanted,  and  repeated  his  recantation  in 
the  largest  chapels  of  London  and  other  parts  of 
Great  Britain.  His  position  in  America  was  that  of 
a  superintendent,  having  been  set  apart  and  recom- 
mended "  as  a  fit  person  to  preside  over  the  flock  of 
Christ"  by  the  imposition  of  the  hands1  and  by  the 
prayer  of  Wesley,  assisted  by  other  ordained  minis- 

1  This  was  the  beginning  of  Methodist  Episcopacy,  fons  et  origo.  The 
"  imposition  of  hands"  was  not  done  publicly  in  a  church,  but  in  Wes- 
ley's bed-chamber  at  Bristol,  England.  It  was  soon  reported,  however, 
that  he  had  made  a  Bishop,  and  his  brother,  the  Rev.  Charles  Wesley, 
who  was  not  in  the  secret,  and  did  not  approve  of  schism,  wrote  the 
witty  epigram,  — 

"  So  easily  are  Bishops  made, 

By  man's  or  woman's  whim ; 
Wesley  his  hands  on  Coke  hath  laid, 
But  —  who  laid  hands  on  him  ?  " 


400  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

ters.  The  proceeding  took  place  on  the  2d  of  Sep- 
tember, 1784,  and  Dr.  Coke  four  months  later  set 
apart,  in  a  similar  manner,  Mr.  Francis  Asbury ;  and 
Wesley  appointed  them  both  "to  be  joint  Superin- 
tendents over  our  brethren  in  North  America."  As 
no  one  can  communicate  what  he  does  not  himself 
possess,  so  neither  Wesley  nor  Coke,  being  presby- 
ters only  of  the  Church  of  England,  could  bestow  the 
Apostolic  office,  and  hence  the  adoption  of  the  title 
of  Bishop  afterwards  was  as  presumptuous  as  the  or- 
dination was  invalid. 

Dr.  Coke  evidently  felt  that  he  was  merely  a  su- 
perintendent and  had  no  authority  as  a  bishop  in  the 
Church  of  God,  and  this  feeling  and  other  considera- 
tions prompted  him  to  write,  nearly  two  months  after 
the  death  of  John  Wesley,  first  to  Bishop  White,  and 
then,  three  weeks  later,  May  14,  1791,  to  Bishop 
Seabury,  proposing  measures  for  a  reunion  of  the 
Methodists  with  the  Episcopal  Church.  In  the  last 
letter,  which  is  the  longest,  written  shortly  before 
embarking  for  England,  he  said :  "  I  love  the  Metho- 
dists in  America,  and  could  not  think  of  leaving  them 
entirely,  whatever  might  happen  to  me  in  Europe. 
The  preachers  and  people  also  love  me,  many  have  a 
peculiar  regard  for  me.  But  I  could  not,  with  pro- 
priety, visit  American  Methodists,  possessing  in  our 
Church  on  this  side  of  the  water  an  office  inferior  to 
that  of  Mr.  Asbury.  But  if  the  two  houses  of  the 
convention  of  the  clergy"  —  meaning  the  General 
Convention  —  "would  consent  to  your  consecration 
of  Mr.  Asbury  and  me  as  bishops  of  the  Methodist 
Society  in  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  these 
United  States  (or  by  any  other  title,  if  that  be  not 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  401 

proper),  on  the  supposition  of  the  reunion  of  the  two 
Churches,  under  proper  mutual  stipulations,  and  en- 
gage that  the  Methodist  Society  shall  have  a  regular 
supply,  on  the  death  of  their  bishops,  and  so,  ad 
perpetuum,  the  grand  difficulty  in  respect  to  the 
preachers  would  be  removed  —  they  would  have  the 
same  men  to  confide  in  whom  they  have  at  present, 
and  all  other  mutual  stipulations  would  soon  be  set- 
tled." 

Bishop  White  briefly  answered  the  letter  which  he 
received,  but  Seabury  appears  to  have  sent  no  reply ; 
probably  for  the  reason  that  the  proposition  was  a 
confidential  one,  not  made  in  a  shape  to  be  at  once 
entertained ;  or  it  may  be  that  his  engagements  were 
such  as  to  prevent  him  from  giving  it  the  considera- 
tion which  it  deserved  until  too  late  to  be  of  any 
avail. 

On  the  30th  of  May,  1791,  the  bishop  set  out  by 
water  for  Newport,  accompanied  by  his  daughter 
Maria,  to  whom  was  entrusted  the  charge  of  his 
house  in  New  London,  and  who  occasionally  attended 
him  on  his  visitations.  His  principal  design  in  this 
journey  was  to  make  an  official  visitation  to  the 
churches  in  Newport,  Bristol,  and  Providence,  that 
had  recently  put  themselves  under  his  superintend- 
ence, and  after  a  fatiguing  voyage  of  sixteen  hours, 
he  arrived  at  his  destination  about  two  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  and  was  welcomed  under  the  hospitable  roof 
of  Mr.  Srmttl7Tector~t>f  Trinity  Church.  Here  he 
tarried  for  several  days,  and  spent  three  of  them  in 
visiting,  and  particularly  in  endeavoring  to  remove 
the  prejudices  and  misunderstandings  of  two  laymen 
respecting  Mr.  Smith's  settlement,  and  it  is  entered 

26 


402  LIFE   AND  COKRESPONDENCE 

in  his  journal:  "By  God's  goodness,  succeeded  so 
far  as  to  see  them  "both  with  their  good  ladies  at 
the  holy  altar  on  Sunday  the  5th,  the  Sunday  after 
Ascension-day.  At  communion  sixty  or  seventy 
were  present.  No  sermon  in  the  morning,  preached 
in  the  afternoon,  and  after  sermon  administered  con- 
firmation to  about  forty,  all  young  people  except 
three  or  four."  From  Newport  he  passed  to  Bristol, 
where  he  found  an  unfinished  church  erected  to  suc- 
ceed the  one  burnt  by  a  party  of  British  troops 
during  the  Revolution,  but  no  rector.  The  lay 
reader,  Mr.  John  Usher,  a  son  of  the  late  worthy 
minister,  was  ready  to  take  Orders,  and  the  congre- 
gation had  long  desired  that  he  might  do  so,  and  be- 
come their  minister.  But  an  unhappy  resentment 
on  the  part  of  his  brother,  which  originated  many 
years  before  in  the  division  of  their  father's  books, 
had  hitherto  been  a  bar  to  the  ordination.  "So 
much  bitterness/'  said  Bishop  Seabury,  "I  think  I 
never  saw  in  any  human  creature.  ^Howjdreadful  a 
state  to  cherish  malice  for  sixteen  years,  malice,  too, 
conceived  without  any  provocation,  exerted  against 
a  brother,  and  to  the  hindrance  of  the  peace  and 
prosperity  of  God's  Church."  l 

It  was  an  unpleasant  feature  of  the  visitation  thus 
far  that  he  found  various  dissatisfactions  and  paro- 
chial quarrels  submitted  to  him  for  adjustment,  but 
at  Providence,  where  he  spent  Whitsunday,  preached 
twice  and  administered  confirmation  to  fifty,  there 
were  no  wounds  to  heal  and  no  strifes  to  compose. 
He  left  the  rector,  Rev.  Moses  Badger,  on  the  15th 
of  June  in  the  post-coach  for  Boston,  and  was  fortu- 

1  MS.  Journal. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  403 

nate  enough  to  arrive  safely  in  the  evening  at  the 
house  of  his  friend,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  Parker, 
rector  of  Trinity  Church.  For  him  he  preached  the 
following  Sunday,  at  both  services,  and  the  next  day 
proceeded  on  his  journey  to  Portsmouth,  stopping  for 
a  couple  of  nights  at  Newburyport,  and  enjoying  the 
hospitality  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Bass. 

The  rector  of  St.  John's  Church,  Portsmouth  (Mr. 
Ogden),  met  him  at  Newburyport  and  conducted  him 
to  his  own  home,  and  on  Sunday,  the  first  after 
Trinity,  he  preached  twice  to  large  congregations 
and  administered  the  rite  of  confirmation  to  seventy- 
two  persons.  The  visit  had  long  been  anticipated  by 
the  people,  and  the  interest  in  it  had  not  yet  reached 
its  height ;  for  on  the  festival  of  St.  Peter,  one  of  the 
three  Saints'  days  "  in  the  leafy  month  of  June,"  he 
again  administered  the  rite  of  confirmation,  —  thirty- 
three  persons  receiving  it,  —  and  advanced  to  the 
priesthood  Rev.  Robert  Fowle,  a  native  of  Newbury- 
port, and  a  graduate  of  Harvard  College,  whom 
eighteen  months  before  he  had  ordained  a  deacon  at 
New  London.  He  made  a  note  of  the  occasion  in  his 
journal  in  these  words :  "  The  crowd  at  church  was 
very  great.  The  novelty  of  the  scene  (an  Episcopal 
ordination  never  having  been  before  held  in  that  part 
of  the  country)  attracted  the  attendance  of  some 
who  little  regarded  the  solemnity  of  the  office,  or  the 
prosperity  of  the  Church.  Dr.  Bass  made  the  pres- 
entation. The  sermon  was  preached  by  me  from 
St.  Matt,  xxviii.  18,  19,  20. 

"  After  church,  several  Presbyterian  ministers  dined 
and  drank  tea  with  us  at  Mr.  Ogden's.  All  was  good 
humor.  That  evening,  however,  I  heard  some  were 


404  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

offended  at  the  sermon,  and  threatened  to  attack  it. 
Conscious  of  the  soundness  of  the  principles  on  which 
it  was  built,  it  was  a  matter  of  no  importance  to  me 
whether  they  attacked,  or  let  it  pass  off  quietly." 

Returning  by  the  way  of  Newburyport,  he  spent 
the  Sunday  with  Dr.  Bass,  and  preached  both  parts  of 
the  day  to  very  large  congregations.  That  in  the 
afternoon  was  supposed  to  consist  of  more  than  two 
thousand  people.  The  church  was  so  crowded  that 
the  aisles  were  impassable  to  those  in  the  remote 
parts  who  expected  to  be  confirmed,  and  only  fifty 
received  the  rite,  but  notice  was  given  that  the  other 
candidates  might  repair  to  the  church  the  next  day, 
and  accordingly  about  fifty  more  were  confirmed. 

The  Bishop  reached  Boston  on  his  homeward  jour- 
ney the  5th  of  July,  and  was  again  the  guest  of  Dr. 
Parker.  He  wrote  in  his  journal  a  few  paragraphs 
which  are  cited  to  show  the  bigotry  and  spirit  of  the 
times,  in  contrast  with  the  better  charities  of  these 
later  days :  "  While  I  was  at  Boston,  Mr.  Osborne's 
paper,  of  Portsmouth,  July  6,  and  Mr.  Russell's,  of 
Boston,  of  the  same  date,  I  believe,  accused  me  of 
saying  in  the  sermon  at  Portsmouth,  <  That  the  belief 
of  the  truth  spoken  by  one  not  inducted  into  the 
priestly  office  in  an  Episcopal  form  is  not  the  faith  of 
God  or  a  divine  faith/  The  sermon,  I  suppose,  will 
soon  be  public,  and  will  speak  for  itself.  One  posi- 
tion I  shall  enter  here  from  the  Portsmouth  paper 
because  of  its  extraordinary  tendency  :  '  If  a  devil 
should  deliver  a  good  Gospel  sermon,  shall  we  disbe- 
lieve because  the  preacher  is  a  devil,  and  not  a  Church 
priest  ? '  Again  :  '  I  am  as  much  bound  to  believe 
the  truth  spoken  by  his  Plutonic  Majesty,  as  I  am  to 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  405 

believe  the  same  truth  when  delivered  by  his  Lord- 
ship of  York,  or  his  Holiness  of  Rome/  To  expose 
the  nonsense  and  profaneness  of  these  assertions 
needs  not  a  word.  They  speak  for  themselves,  and 
evidently  show  what  spirit  they  are  of.  To  bear 
abuse  and  reviling  language  and  misrepresentation 
for  His  sake  who  bore  them  all  for  me  is  my  duty. 
Enable  me,  gracious  God,  to  bear  them  with  patience 
and  resignation  to  thy  will  in  humble  dependence  on 
thy  grace."  * 

After  an  absence  of  six  weeks  and  four  days,  the 
Bishop,  with  his  daughter,  arrived  at  New  London  on 
the  15th  of  July,  having  travelled  out  and  home,  by 
land  and  by  water,  three  hundred  and  ninety-seven 
miles,  confirmed  three  hundred  and  eleven  persons, 
and  admitted  one  to  the  priesthood. 

The  two  volumes  of  sermons,  the  preparation  of 
which  had  been  some  time  in  his  mind,  were  pub- 
lished in  1793,  and  he  conceived  the  idea  of  having 
them  reprinted  in  England,  and  sent  six  discourses 
in  manuscript  to  his  friend  and  correspondent,  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Boucher,  to  be  added  to  them,  if  a  book- 
seller could  be  found  to  engage  in  the  enterprise. 
They  passed  through  two  or  three  editions  in  this 
country,  but  there  was  no  prospect  that  there  would 
be  a  foreign  demand  for  them,  and  hence  no  English 
publisher  was  willing  to  risk  any  money  in  such  an 
undertaking.  They  were  dedicated,  "  To  the  Episco- 
pal clergy  of  Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island,  ....  in 
token  of  the  regard  and  esteem  of  their  affectionate 
Diocesan,"  and  embraced  a  variety  of  subjects,  among 
them,  the  authority  and  duty  of  Christ's  ministers, 

1  MS.  Journal. 


406  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

the  Apostolical  Commission,  Baptism,  Confirmation, 
and  the  Holy  Eucharist.  Lay  readers  of  that  period 
used  them  freely  in  the  vacant  parishes  of  Connecti- 
cut, and  they  helped  to  form  that  type  of  church- 
manship  of  which  Seabury  was  an  admirable  expo- 
nent and  defender.  A  posthumous  volume  of  sermons 
from  manuscripts  prepared  by  himself  was  published 
in  1798. 

The  Bishop,  after  returning  from  his  eastern  jour- 
ney, continued  in  New  London  until  Monday,  the  3d 
of  October,  when  he  started  for  Watertown  to  meet 
his  clergy  in  convocation,  and  make  official  visits  to 
several  parishes  in  the  State.  He  passed  the  first 
night  at  East  Haddam,  and  the  next  day  rode  to  the 
house  where  the  people  usually  assembled  for  divine 
service,  and  preached  to  a  large  congregation  on  the 
subject  of  confirmation,  administered  the  rite  to 
twenty-five,  all  elderly  people,  and  "  the  communion 
to  twenty-seven,  twenty-four  of  whom  had  never  re- 
ceived it  in  the  Church  before,  being  late  converts 
from  Presbyterianism."  He  rode  on  to  Middle  town, 
and  had  the  pleasure  of  meeting  and  passing  the 
evening  there  with  his  old  friend  Dr.  Learning,  at  the 
house  of  Mr.  Jarvis.  The  next  morning  he  took  up 
his  journey  for  "Watertown,  and  found  the  clergy  as- 
sembled for  divine  service  when  he  arrived. 

Much  of  the  business  transacted  at  this  time  has 
been  already  mentioned.  It  was  here  that  the  first 
step  was  taken  to  introduce  the  laity  into  the  coun- 
cils of  the  Church,  and  the  tenor  of  the  action  shows 
how  cautiously  the  thing  was  done.  It  was  "  voted 
that  each  clergyman  recommend  it  to  the  people  of 
his  cure  to  choose  one  or  more  persons  to  represent 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  407 

them  at  a  convocation  to  be  holden  at  the  Church  in 
New  Haven  on  the  30th  of  May  next,  at  10  o'clock 
A.  M.,  which  representatives  are  to  be  considered  as  a 
Committee  of  Conference,  to  confer  with  the  convo- 
cation, at  that  time  and  place,  on  all  matters  that  re- 
spect the  temporal  interest  of  the  Church." 

The  clergy  returned  to  their  respective  homes  and 
parochial  duties  on  Saturday,  but  the  Bishop  remained 
at  Watertown,  and  confirmed  on  Sunday  thirty-three 
persons,  and  admitted  Mr.  Seth  Hart  to  the  order  of 
Deacons.  The  following  day  he  preached  to  a  large 
congregation  at  Waterbury,  on  the  unity  of  Christ's 
Church,  —  a  favorite  theme  with  him,  —  and  con- 
firmed fifty-four.  Passing  down  the  valley  of  the 
Naugatuck,  he  stopped  a  day  and  a  night  at  Gunn- 
town,  confirmed  fourteen,  and  was  welcomed  by  the 
venerable  Dr.  Mansfield,  on  the  12th,  at  Oxford, 
where,  as  at  Derby,  he  preached  to  a  small  congrega- 
tion, and  administered  in  each  place  the  apostolic  rite. 
Crossing  the  Housatonic,  he  was  met  at  the  ferry  by 
the  Kev.  Mr.  Clarke  and  his  two  church-wardens,  and 
conducted  to  Bipton.  From  thence  he  proceeded  to 
Stratfield,  now  Bridgeport,  and  on  Sunday,  the  16th, 
preached  there  both  parts  of  the  day  to  large  congre- 
gations, confirmed  twenty,  and  advanced  the  Rev. 
David  Perry,  Deacon,  to  the  priesthood.  During  the 
week  he  visited  Fairfield  and  Weston,  parishes  an- 
nexed to  Stratfield,  forming  the  cure  of  Mr.  Shel- 
ton ;  and  Tashua,  a  part  of  Mr.  Clarke's  charge,  con- 
firming in  the  last-named  place,  seventy-two  persons. 
He  spent  the  next  Sunday  in  New  Haven,  "  preach- 
ing all  day  for  Mr.  Hubbard,  who  went  to  West  Ha- 
ven ; "  and  by  resting  and  easy  stages,  stopping  a 


408  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

day  at  Branford,  and  another  at  Killingworth,  he 
reached  home  on  the  27th,  having  been  absent  the 
whole  month,  travelled  two  hundred  and  twenty-three 
miles,  and  confirmed  three  hundred  and  three  per- 
sons. 

Though  he  was  the  guest  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Bowden 
in  Stratford,  and  continued  with  him  for  two  days,  he 
did  not  enter  the  church,  or  attempt  to  hold  any  ser- 
vice in  the  place.  The  parish,  the  oldest  in  the  dio- 
cese, was  now  under  the  ministrations  of  Mr.  Sayre, 
the  "  protesting "  clergyman,  whose  violent  course 
towards  Bishop  Seabury  was  as  lamentable  as  it  was 
unjust  and  causeless.  The  people  followed  his  guid- 
ance to  their  own  detriment,  and  the  question  was, 
what  could  be  done  to  save  the  parish  from  division 
and  strife,  and  bring  it  to  the  acceptance  of  the  Con- 
stitution and  Prayer  Book.  A  convocation  was  held 
at  East  Haddam,  February  12,  1792,  and  the  subject 
of  establishing  an  Episcopal  Academy  came  up  for 
consideration,  but  the  most  important  business,  and 
that  which  really  called  the  clergy  together,  was  the 
situation  of  the  Stratford  parish,  and  its  relations  to 
the  Church  in  Connecticut.  It  was  resolved  "  that 
unless  the  wardens  and  vestrymen  of  Christ  Church 
in  Stratford  shall  transmit  to  the  Rt.  Reverend,  the 
Bishop  of  Connecticut,  within  fourteen  days  after 
Easter  Monday  next,  a  notification  that  the  congre- 
gation of  said  church  have  adopted  the  Constitution 
of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  as  settled  by  the 
General  Convention  at  Philadelphia,  in  October,  1789, 
they  (the  congregation)  will  be  considered  as  having 
totally  separated  themselves  from  the  Church  of  Con- 
necticut." 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  409 

There  was  no  other  clergyman  in  the  State  who 
had  a  thought  of  arraying  his  people  in  opposition  to 
the  Bishop.  Dr.  Dibblee,  of  Stamford,  could  hardly 
be  reconciled  to  the  use  of  the  new  Prayer  Book,  and 
continued  in  the  old  ways  without  meaning  to  be  re- 
fractory. His  health  was  broken,  and  he  ceased  to 
attend  the  meetings  of  his  brethren,  but  the  following 
excellent  letter  reveals  his  character,  and  at  the  same 
time  the  lenity  of  the  Bishop  in  dealing  with  his  prej- 
udices :  — 

Feb.  22,  1792. 

REV'D  AND  VERY  DEAR  SIR,  —  Did  I  not  know  to  whom 
I  am  writing,  I  should  fear  doing  hurt  and  not  good  by  this 
letter.  But  when  I  consider  you,  as  I  have  ever  esteemed 
you,  as  an  old,  and  worthy,  and  good  friend,  who  has  a  re- 
gard for  me  as  a  fellow-minister  with  me  of  the  Church  of 
Christ,  and  equally  with  me  solicitous  for  her  welfare,  and 
the  peace  and  quiet  and  Christian  lives  of  all  her  members, 
—  as  a  gentleman  whom  strong  abilities,  a  candid  mind,  long 
experience  in  the  world,  and  the  long  and  constant  practice 
of  all  Christian  virtues,  hath  deservedly  raised  to  a  good  and 
eminent  character,  —  every  apprehension  that  I  shall  give 
you  pain,  or  excite  in  you  any  resentment,  or  any  idea  that 
I  wish  to  interfere  needlessly  in  your  affairs,  vanishes  and 
disappears.  My  earnest  desire  is  that  you  would  review  in 
your  own  mind  the  ground  and  principles  on  which  you  have 
hitherto  refrained  from  the  use  of  the  Prayer-book  of  the 
Church  of  the  United  States  —  to  consider  whether  you  can- 
not use  that  book  in  divine  service  with  a  good  conscience, 
and  so  as  to  offer  to  God  an  acceptable  service  ?  If  you  can, 
whether  Christian  charity,  the  love  of  peace  and  unity,  and 
the  edification  of  the  body  of  Christ,  do  not  require  that  you 
should  use  it  —  and  whether  the  peace  and  prosperity  of 
your  own  congregations,  and  consequently  your  own  peace 
and  quiet,  do  not  also  require  it  ?  To  use  particular  argu- 
ments with  you  is  unnecessary.  They  will  occur  to  you, 


410  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

probably,  with  more  force  than  I  could  give  them.  If  you 
cannot  use  the  book  with  a  good  conscience,  I  have  not  a 
word  to  say  to  prevail  on  you  to  do  so.  But  if  you  can,  re- 
member, my  dear  sir,  the  peace  of  the  churches  in  Connecti- 
cut, and  your  own  peace,  and  the  quiet  and  Christian  temper 
of  your  own  people,  are  nearly  concerned,  and  sooner  or  later 
will  suffer  by  your  refusal.  The  question  is  not  which  book 
is  the  best  in  itself,  but  which  will  best  promote  the  peace 
and  unity  of  the  Church.  Such  was  the  temper  of  the  peo- 
ple to  the  southward,  that  unity  could  not  be  had  with  the 
old  book.  Is  not,  then,  the  unity  of  the  whole  Church 
through  the  States  a  price  sufficient  to  justify  the  alterations 
which  have  been  made?  supposing  (and  in  this  I  believe 
you  will  join  with  me)  that  there  is  no  alteration  made  but 
what  is  consistent  with  the  analogy  of  the  Christian  faith. 
Let  me,  therefore,  intreat  you  as  a  father,  to  review  this 
matter,  and  I  have  no  doubt  but  that  you  will  join  with  your 
brethren,  and  walk  by  the  same  rule  in  your  public  ministra- 
tions. This  will  rejoice  their  hearts  and  mine  also.  May 
God  be  your  director  in  all  things,  and  grant  that  we  may 
meet  together  in  his  own  heavenly  kingdom. 

I  am,  Rev'd  and  dear  Sir,  your  affectionate  brother  and 
very  humble  serv't.  S.,  Bp.  Connect.1 

1  MS.  Letter-Book. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  411 


CHAPTER 


CONTENTION  IN  STRATFORD,  AND  EFFORTS  OF  MR.  BOWDEN  TO 
CONCILIATE  THE  PEOPLE  ;  INFLUENCE  OF  MR.  SAYRE,  AND 
TROUBLES  IN  WOODBURY  ;  CONVENTION  IN  NEW  HAVEN,  AND 

LAITY  FIRST  INTRODUCED  ;  SUPPORT  OF  THE  BISHOP,  AND  EPIS- 
COPAL VISITATION  ;  SERMON  BEFORE  GENERAL  CONVENTION,  AND 
CONSECRATION  OF  DR.  CLAGGETT  ;  CONVOCATION  AT  HUNTINGTON, 
AND  PARISH  INDEPENDENCE;  CONVENTION  AT  MIDDLETOWN,  AND 

ORDINATION. 

A.  D.  1792-1793. 

THE  opposition  to  the  Prayer  Book  and  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  General  Convention  still  continued  in 
Stratford,  and  nothing  could  be  done  to  remove  the 
misapprehensions  of  the  people  while  Mr.  Sayre  re- 
mained in  charge  of  the  parish.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Bow- 
den  wrote  an  address  to  them  which  was  read  pub- 
licly on  the  very  day  when  the  question  was  to  be 
decided  whether  they  would  unite  with  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church  or  not,  and  though  the  arguments 
contained  in  it  were  strong  and  irresistible,  the  con- 
gregation voted  to  continue  in  the  old  way. 

This  address  was  afterwards  printed,  with  a  letter 
to  Mr.  Sayre  appended,  written  by  the  same  hand, 
and  faithfully  exhibiting  the  methods  used  to  deceive 
the  people  and  lead  them  to  disregard  the  peace,  the 
unity,  and  the  authority  of  the  Church.  "  I  set  out 
in  this  business,"  said  Bowden,  "  with  this  great  ad- 
vantage :  It  is  well  known  in  Stratford,  and  by  many 


412  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

who  do  not  live  here,  that  I  did  not  come  to  this 
place  with  any  prejudices  against  you ;  but,  on  the 
contrary,  with  those  sentiments  of  regard  for  you 
which  a  long  intimacy  would  naturally  cherish.  Nay, 
you  yourself  know  that  to  enjoy  the  society  of  your 
family  was  my  principal  reason  for  coming  here.  I 
knew,  indeed,  before  I  returned  from  the  West  Indies, 
that  you  did  not  like  the  alterations  in  the  Prayer 
Book,  nor  some  things  in  the  constitution  of  the 
Church,  but  it  never  entered  into  my  mind  that  you 
could  have  gone  to  such  an  extravagant  length  as  to 
break  off  all  ecclesiastical  communion  with  your 
brethren,  and  to  have  formed  a  plan  to  separate  this 
church  from  the  diocese."1 

Mr.  Sayre  finally  withdrew  from  the  scene  of  con- 
tention, and  the  parish,  in  the  exercise  of  a  sober 
judgment  and  under  the  influence  of  better  counsels, 
ceased  its  opposition  and  conformed  to  the  new  reg- 
ulations and  the  action  of  the  General  Convention. 
But  he  was  not  yet  silenced.  He  sowed  the  seeds  of 
discontent  and  controversy  in  another  parish  with 
which  he  had  connection,  and  where  the  evil  effects 
lingered  longer.  The  people  at  Woodbury  were  par- 
tial to  his  ministrations,  and  sympathizing  with  him 
in  his  troubles  and  believing  in  the  sincerity  of  his 
course,  they  adhered  to  him,  and  thus  became  iso- 
lated and  without  pastoral  care.  For  at  a  convoca- 
tion in  New  Milford,  September  25,  1793,  the  clergy 
decided  that  in  the  exercise  of  their  ministerial  office 
they  could  not  pay  any  attention  to  the  parish  in 
Woodbury  until  it  acceded  to  the  constitution  of  the 
Church  in  Connecticut.  It  was  voted  at  the  same 

1  Address  and  Letter,  p.  25. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  413 

time,  that  "  whenever  a  certain  paper  relative  to  the 
Eev.  Mr.  James  Sayre  be  transmitted  by  the  Bishop 
to  the  several  clergymen  of  the  Church  in  Connecti- 
cut, they  shall  read  it  in  the  several  congregations 
under  their  care  on  the  first  Sunday  subsequent  to 
their  receiving  it." 

Months  passed  away  and  the  spirit  of  opposition 
was  unbroken.  The  following  letter,  written  on  the 
eve  of  the  annual  convention  in  New  Haven  to  Mr. 
John  Clark,  clerk  of  the  parish,  will  shed  some  light 
upon  the  history  of  the  dissatisfaction :  — 

NEW  LONDON,  May  27th,  1794. 

Sin,  —  Your  letter,  by  the  direction  of  the  Episcopal 
Church  in  Woodbury,  dated  April  26th,  1794,  came  not  to 
my  house  till  four  days  ago.  The  notification  your  congre- 
gation received  from  the  Rev.  Mr.  Hart  was  such  as  I  pre- 
sume the  Convocation  directed  him  to  deliver  to  them.  It 
is  now  too  late  to  enter  on  the  discussion  of  the  points  on 
which  that  notification  was  founded  before  the  meeting  of  the 
Convention  at  New  Haven,  on  the  first  Wednesday  of  June. 
The  situation  of  your  Church  will  then  come  before  them ; 
and  I  should  be  glad  that  one  of  your  members  would  attend 
at  that  time  in  the  name  of  the  congregation — when  I  trust 
every  thing  may  be  settled  to  your  satisfaction,  and  the  sat- 
isfaction of  the  Convention.  For  my  own  part,  I  should  be 
glad  to  do  you  any  service  in  my  power,  consistently  with 
the  general  interest  of  the  Church  in  Connecticut,  and  that, 
I  trust,  your  congregation  hath  no  disposition  to  contravene. 
This  I  am  confident  is  also  the  disposition  of  the  Clergy 
toward  you ;  and  will  be  the  disposition  of  the  Gentlemen  of 
the  laity  who  shall  meet  in  Convention. 

You  observe  that  your  congregation  have  objections  to 
some  parts  of  the  Constitution.  Let  those  objections  be 
be  made  known.  It  ought  to  have  been  done  a  year  ago  at 
Middletown.  It  was  sent  to  you  for  that  purpose,  and  a 


414  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

year  allowed  for  you  to  consider  of  it,  and  make  your  objec- 
tions if  you  had  any.  As  you  made  none,  it  was  to  be  pre- 
sumed you  had  none.  That  Constitution  will,  I  suppose,  be 
this  year  taken  up  by  the  Convention,  amended,  if  necessary, 
and  adopted,  or  rejected,  as  shall  appear  best. 

Having  no  other  conveyance  I  send  this  letter  by  the  Post. 
I  pray  God  to  direct  your  congregation  in  this  business,  and 
keep  them  in  the  unity  of  his  Church.  Accept  the  best 
wishes  of  Sir,  your  very  humble  Serv't, 

S.,  Bp.  Conn.  $  RJio.  Isl1 

The  clergy  at  their  next  meeting  in  New  Haven, 
June  5,  1794,  appointed  three  of  their  number  "  a 
Committee  for  the  purpose  of  accommodating  matters 
with  the  Episcopal  congregation  at  Woodbury,  and 
reconciling  them  to  a  union  with  the  Protestant  Epis- 
copal Church."  In  the  fulfillment  of  the  appoint- 
ment, this  committee  met  the  people  in  their  church 
on  the  7th  of  July,  and  suspending,  for  the  time,  the 
operation  of  the  original  vote,  went  into  a  review  of 
the  constitution  and  explained  it  in  a  manner  so  sat- 
isfactory that  all  former  objections  were  removed, 
and  the  parish  with  great  unanimity  adopted  it,  and 
thus  regained  its  old  position  in  the  diocese. 

On  the  2d  of  June,  1792,  Bishop  Seabury  was  in 
New  Haven,  and  the  next  day,  Trinity  Sunday,  offici- 
ated for  Dr.  Hubbard  and  allowed  him  to  go  to  a  par- 
ish in  the  vicinity,  where  the  communion  for  several 
months  had  not  been  administered.  A  convention, 
into  which  lay  delegates  were  introduced  for  the  first 
time,  met  the  following  Wednesday,  in  Trinity  Church, 
and  the  Bishop  delivered  the  sermon  from  the  text : 
"  Jerusalem  is  builded  as  a  city  that  is  compact  to- 

1  MS.  Letter  Book. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  415 

gether."  The  whole  number  present,  including  the 
bishop,  was  forty-five,  of  whom  twenty-four  were 
laymen,  representing  parishes  which  had  adopted  the 
Constitution  of  the  General  Convention.  This  was 
the  beginning  of  a  new  era  in  the  legislation  of  the 
Connecticut  Church,  and  Seabury,  who  had  looked 
forward  to  it  with  much  interest,  entered  in  his  jour- 
nal that  "  on  this  day  and  the  next  the  business  of 
the  Convention  was  happily  finished,  rules  were 
agreed  upon  for  the  conduct  of  ecclesiastical  affairs, 
respecting  both  clergy  and  laity,  and  Delegates  were 
appointed  to  attend  the  General  Convention  at  New 
York  in  September." 

One  measure,  to  which  there  is  no  reference  in  the 
printed  minutes,  was  adopted  by  the  laity  in  a  sepa- 
rate meeting.  It  related  to  the  support  of  the  bishop, 
which  had  hitherto  been  very  little  so  far  as  the  par- 
ishes were  concerned.  The  lay  delegates  came  to- 
gether, and  —  appointing  John  Wooster,  of  Derby, 
chairman,  and  Jonathan  Ingersoll,  of  New  Haven, 
clerk  —  consented  to  the  following  recommendation, 
which  was  printed  on  the  same  sheet  with  the  proposed 
"  Constitution  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in 
the  State  of  Connecticut,"  and  sent  out  to  the  par- 
ishes :  — 

This  convention  being  deeply  impressed  with  the  necessity 
of  contributing  towards  the  support  of  the  Rt.  Rev.  Dr.  Sea- 
bury,  Bishop  of  Connecticut ;  and  taking  into  consideration 
that  a  few  years  since  a  convention  of  lay  delegates  recom- 
mended to  the  several  Episcopal  societies  in  this  State,  that 
a  sum  equal  to  one  half -penny  on  the  pound  on  the  grand 
list  of  said  societies  should  be  annually  raised,  for  said  sup- 
port ;  and  taking  into  consideration,  also,  that  many  societies 


416  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

through  inattention  have  not  altogether  complied  with  said 
recommendation  : 

It  is  therefore  strongly  and  earnestly  desired  and  requested 
by  the  members  of  this  convention,  that  the  several  Episcopal 
societies  in  this  State  do  use  their  utmost  endeavours  to  raise 
by  contribution,  or  otherwise,  a  sum  equal  to  one  half-penny 
on  the  pound,  on  the  grand  list  of  said  societies,  towards  the 
maintenance  and  support  of  the  bishop,  the  current  year, 
commencing  on  this  sixth  day  of  June :  And  that  said  sum 
be  raised  in  quarterly  payments. 

This  convention  cannot  but  believe,  that  every  good 
churchman  will  be  desirous  to  contribute  his  quota,  for  so 
laudable  a  purpose. 

And  as  it  is  uncertain  how  great  a  sum  can  be  raised,  ac- 
cording to  the  above  proposition,  it  is  requested  that  the  sum 
total  of  the  grand  list,  of  the  several  Episcopal  societies  be 
returned  to  the  next  convention. 

The  above  recommendation,  voted  in  convention,  to  be 
sent  to  the  several  Episcopal  societies  in  this  State. 

From  the  report  of  the  lay  delegates  to  the  next 
diocesan  convention,  it  appeared  that  the  grand  list  of 
the  parishes  which  they  represented  amounted,  ac- 
cording to  a  general  estimate,  to  "  one  hundred  and 
fourteen  thousand  nine  hundred  pounds  ;  and  if  all 
had  acquiesced  in  the  recommendation  and  paid  their 
respective  quotas,  a  handsome  sum  would  have  been 
realized.  But  it  was  an  uncertain  provision  at  best, 
and  steps  were  taken  at  this  very  time  to  establish  a 
fund  for  the  support  of  the  Episcopate,  and  a  commit- 
tee was  appointed  to  apply  to  the  General  Assembly 
for  an  act  of  incorporation  with  a  view  to  this  end. 
The  grave,  however,  closed  over  the  first  bishop  of 
Connecticut,  before  even  the  prayer  of  the  petition- 
ers was  granted. 

An  Episcopal  visitation  was  usually  made  in  con- 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  417 

nection  with  a  convention  or  convocation,  and  Bishop 
Seabury  lingered  in  New  Haven  after  the  adjourn- 
ment, and  on  Sunday  ordained  David  Butler  and  Rus- 
sel  Catlin,  Deacons,  and  confirmed  fifty-one  persons. 
Leaving  the  city  on  the  12th  of  June,  he  proceeded 
north  through  Cheshire,  Southington,  Farmington, 
Simsbury,  and  down  by  the  way  of  Hartford  and  He- 
bron to  New  London,  —  having  been  absent  twenty- 
two  days,  travelled  one  hundred  and  seventy-four 
miles,  and  confirmed  in  all  one  hundred  and  fifty- 
three  persons. 

With  scarcely  two  months'  rest,  in  the  heat  of  sum- 
mer, he  left  home  Monday  morning,  August  13th,  to 
attend  the  General  Convention,  which  was  to  meet  in 
New  York  the  second  Tuesday  of  September,  and  be- 
fore which  he  had  been  requested  to  preach  a  sermon. 
He  took  the  route  by  land  through  the  shore  towns, 
and  visited  the  clergy  in  the  way,  —  among  them 
Mr.  Bowden  at  Stratford,  with  whom  he  passed  a 
night,  and  who  had  been  appointed  one  of  the  depu- 
ties from  Connecticut,  but  attended  the  Convention 
as  a  representative  of  the  Church  in  Rhode  Island. 
On  the  16th  he  reached  Norwalk,  and  the  next  day 
"  embarked  at  Old  Well  for  Huntington  on  Long 
Island,"  but  contrary  winds  obliged  the  captain  of  the 
vessel  to  stop  at  one  of  the  Norwalk  Islands  and  re- 
main all  night.  For  nearly  three  weeks  he  was  with 
his  kindred  and  friends  at  North  Hempstead,  and 
amid  the  scenes  of  his  youthful  associations.  His 
mother  was  yet  alive,  in  good  health,  and  those  who 
remembered  him  as  a  lay  reader  and  missionary  must 
have  been  glad  to  see  and  hear  him  in  his  Episcopal 
character,  and  after  the  trials  through  which  he  had 

27 


418  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

passed  in  getting  his  orders  recognized  and  the 
Church  in  this  country  settled  and  united. 

Going  to  New  York,  he  visited  his  old  friend,  James 
Eivington,  and  on  Sunday,  the  9th  of  September, 
preached  in  the  morning  for  Dr.  Benjamin  Moore  in 
Trinity  Church,  and  in  the  afternoon  in  St.  George's 
Chapel.  The  convention  met  the  following  Tuesday, 
and  Seabury  was  the  only  bishop  present.  After  pray- 
ers both  houses  adjourned  till  ten  o'clock  the  next 
morning,  to  await  the  arrival  of  other  members.  In 
the  mean  time  a  question  of  etiquette  came  up  for  set- 
tlement, and  Bishop  White,  speaking  of  it  in  his  Me- 
moirs, terms  it  "  an  unpropitious  circumstance  attend- 
ing the  opening  of  this  Convention."  The  political 
principles  of  Bishop  Provoost,  and  his  course  in  regard 
to  the  validity  of  the  Scottish  consecration,  kept  him 
aloof  from  Seabury,  and  if  he  ever  had  the  courtesy 
to  answer  one  of  his  letters,  it  is  certain  he  did  not 
exchange  friendly  visits  with  him  when  he  knew  of 
his  presence  in  New  York  at  different  times,  or  pay 
him  any  respect  as  the  Bishop  of  Connecticut.  There 
may  have  been  no  personal  affront  on  either  side,  but 
the  absence  of  official  recognition  was  in  itself  enough 
to  discourage  the  first  attempts  at  civility  on  the  part 
of  Seabury.  The  issue  of  the  affair  is  thus  described 
by  Bishop  White  :  — 

•"  The  prejudices  in  the  minds  of  the  two  bishops 
were  such  as  threatened  a  distance  between  them 
which  would  give  an  unfavorable  appearance  to  them- 
selves, and  to  the  whole  body,  and  might  perhaps 
have  an  evil  influence  on  their  deliberations.  But  it 
happened  otherwise.  On  a  proposal  being  made  to 
them  by  common  friends,  and  through  the  medium  of 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  419 

the  present  author,  on  the  suggestion  of  Dr.  Smith, 
they  consented  without  the  least  hesitation,  Bishop 
Seabury  to  pay,  and  Bishop  Provoost  to  receive,  the 
visit  which  etiquette  enjoined  on  the  former  to  the 
latter ;  and  was  as  readily  accepted  by  the  one  as  it 
had  been  proffered  by  the  other.  The  author  was 
present  when  it  took  place.  Bishop  Provoost  asked 
his  visitant  to  dine  with  him  on  the  same  day,  in  com- 
pany of  the  author  and  others.  The  invitation  was 
accepted,  and  from  that  time  nothing  was  perceived 
in  either  of  them  which  seemed  to  show  that  the  for- 
mer distance  was  the  result  of  anything  else  but  dif- 
ference in  opinion." 

The  sermon  of  Bishop  Seabury  before  the  conven- 
tion was  from  the  text,  "  And  above  all  these  things 
put  on  charity,  which  is  the  bond  of  perfectness." 
It  was  printed  by  the  request  of  both  houses,  and 
glowed  with  the  true  spirit  of  Christian  love,  —  with 
that  perfect  and  comprehensive  charity  which  tends 
to  preserve  the  peace  and  unity  of  the  Church  under 
all  possible  circumstances.  An  extract  from  the  con- 
cluding portion  will  show  that  the  errors  which  he 
condemned  were  not  limited  to  those  times,  but  even 
such  as  may  be  found  in  all  periods  of  Christian  his- 
tory. 

There  are  two  extremes  into  which  men  are  apt  to  run  in 
the  management  of  the  Church.  One  is  to  depress  the  gov- 
ernment and  priesthood,  and  lay  them  open  to  all  claimants  ; 
to  relax  the  doctrines  and  faith,  according  to  the  prevailing 
tenets  of  philosophy  and  metaphysics,  —  and  I  may  add, 
according  to  the  fashionable  system  of  divinity,  —  to  explain 
away  the  sacraments,  till  they  become  merely  empty  and 
vain  shadows,  without  substance  or  reality,  —  to  weaken  the 
1  Memoirs  ofP.E.  Church,  pp.  161,  162. 


420  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

obligations  of  holiness  which  Christianity  lays  on  us,  thereby 
encouraging  people  to  rest  in  decency  of  manners,  according 
to  the  mode  of  the  times,  without  regarding  that  self-denial 
which  restrains  all  tendencies  to  evil,  or  that  mortification 
which  subdues  and  keeps  under  the  unruly  appetites  and 
desires  of  body  and  mind.  This  conduct  is  utterly  inconsis- 
tent with  the  prosperity  of  our  holy  religion,  and  must  be 
carefully  avoided,  lest  we  make  shipwreck  of  faith  and  a  good 
conscience,  and  betray  the  Church  into  a  corruption  of  that 
truth,  of  which  God  hath  made  her  the  pillar  and  ground. 

The  other  extreme,  to  which  I  adverted,  is  the  setting  of 
the  terms  of  admission  and  continuance  in  the  Church  higher, 
and  making  them  more  rigid  than  Christ  and  his  Apostles 
have  set  and  made  them  ;  thereby  excluding  persons  from 
the  unity  and  communion  of  the  Church,  who  by  a  fair  and 
candid  construction  of  the  rules  given  in  Scripture  have  a 
right  to  be  admitted  to  the  fellowship  and  all  the  privileges 
of  Christ's  religion.  Those  Christian  professors  who  insist 
on  having  a  pure  Church  in  this  world,  and  who,  to  obtain 
their  point,  have  formed  narrow  and  rigid  and  very  partic- 
ular rules  for  the  faith  and  practice  of  their  members,  — 
who  admit  into,  and  reject  from,  their  communion  by  a  vote 
of  their  church  members,  not  always  making  due  allowance 
for  the  weakness  of  human  nature,  the  violence  of  sudden 
and  unexpected  temptation,  or  the  nature  of  things  indiffer- 
ent, which  a  good  Christian  may  do  or  forbear  without 
wounding  his  integrity,  are  on  this  ground  to  be  condemned. 
They  forget  that  Christ  hath  compared  the  Church  in  this 
world  to  a  net  cast  into  the  sea,  which  encloseth  fishes 
good  and  bad,  —  to  a  field,  in  which  tares  grow  with  the 
wheat ;  that  to  separate  the  good  from  the  bad  is  the  prop- 
erty of  God  only  ;  because  He  only  knoweth  the  heart,  and 
hath  ability  to  make  the  distinction  ;  and  that  He  hath  re- 
served this  separation  to  the  judgment  of  the  last  day,  when 
it  will  be  effectually  made.  They  consider  not  that  the 
affairs  of  the  bad  and  good  are  intimately  mingled  together 
in  this  world,  and  have  absolute  dependence  on  each  other, 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  421 

even  as  the  roots  of  the  tares  are  mixed  and  tangled  with 
the  wheat,  so  that  it  exceeds  all  human  prudence  to  root  out 
the  former  without  injuring  the  latter.  They  must  grow 
together  till  the  judgment  of  God  shall  decide  upon  them. 
Then  shall  Christ  "  present,"  that  is,  take  u  it  to  himself  a 
glorious  Church,  not  having  spot,  or  wrinkle,  or  any  such 
thing;  but  that  it  should  be  holy  and  without  blemish." 

The  business  of  the  convention  was  not  much  pro- 
longed ;  for  a  week  was  deemed  sufficient  to  consider 
the  subjects  brought  before  it,  and  accomplish  all  that 
was  done.  The  Ordinal  of  the  Church  of  England 
was  reviewed,  and  alterations  made  to  accommodate 
it  to  local  circumstances.  "  The  only  thing  I  have  to 
regret,"  says  Bishop  Seabury,  "  is  that  the  form  of 
words  at  the  imposition  of  hands  in  ordaining  Priests, 
as  it  stands  in  the  English  book,  is  not  made  absolute 
in  ours,  but  an  alternative  or  another  form,  similar  to 
that  in  making  Deacons,  is  permitted  to  those  Bishops 
who  choose  it." 

The  Eev.  James  Madison,  D.  D.,  President  of  Will- 
iam and  Mary  College,  was  chosen  Bishop  of  Virginia 
on  the  7th  of  May,  1790,  and  a  sum  not  exceeding 
£200  was  directed  by  the  convention  of  that  State 
to  be  advanced  to  him  for  the  purpose  of  defraying 
his  expenses  in  obtaining  consecration.  He  went  to 
England,  and  was  consecrated  in  the  Chapel  of  Lam- 
beth Palace,  September  19th,  and  had  been  two  years 
in  the  exercise  of  his  office  when  he  took  his  seat  in 
the  General  Convention  at  New  York.  The  question 
about  having  three  bishops  in  the  English  line  of  suc- 
cession in  this  country  before  proceeding  to  a  conse- 
cration was  thus  put  to  rest  \  and  by  this  time  the 
penal  laws,  which  had  so  long  embarrassed  the  Scot- 


422  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

tish  non-jurors,  were  repealed,  and  the  English  pre- 
lates, unrestrained  by  political  considerations,  could 
now  recognize  their  brethren  in  Scotland,  and  concede 
that  there  might  be  bishops  in  the  Church  of  God 
without  the  authority  of  the  king. 

At  a  convention  held  in  Annapolis,  May,  1792, 
the  Eev.  Thomas  John  Claggett,  D.  D.,  was  elected 
Bishop  of  the  Church  in  Maryland,  and  the  clerical 
and  lay  deputies  from  the  State  appeared  with  him 
at  the  Session  in  New  York,  and,  with  the  necessary 
documents  in  hand,  presented  him  to  the  House  of 
Bishops,  "  requesting  that  his  consecration  might  be 
expedited."  It  was  a  movement  intended  to  unite 
Episcopalians  more  closely  together  by  blending  the 
two  lines  of  succession,  and  forever  preventing  the  pos- 
sibility of  a  question  arising  in  the  American  Church 
as  to  the  relative  validity  of  the  English  and  Scotch 
Episcopacy.  For  the  application  to  consecrate  Dr. 
Claggett  was  not  made  to  those  only  who  received 
their  authority  in  the  Chapel  at  Lambeth,  but  the 
whole  four  were  requested  to  join  in  the  act,  which 
was  solemnized  in  Trinity  Church,  Monday,  Septem- 
ber 17th,  and  from  that  day  not  a  bishop  has  been 
consecrated  in  this  Church  "  who  must  not,  to  make 
his  consecration  canonical,  claim  the  succession,  in 
part  at  least,  through  the  Scottish  Episcopate." l 

It  has  been  mentioned  that  Seabury  was  the  only 
bishop  present  at  the  opening  of  the  convention. 
When  they  all  met  Wednesday  morning  in  the  ves- 
try-room of  Trinity  Church,  it  appeared  that  two  of 
the  four  —  Provoost  and  Madison  —  were  dissatisfied 
with  the  rule  which  had  been  established  in  regard  to 

1  Hawks's  Ecclesiastical  Contributions,  Maryland,  p.  312. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  423 

the  presidency,  and  wished  its  repeal.  The  point 
was  not  decided  during  the  day,  and  as  much  of  it 
was  occupied  with  the  religious  service,  followed  by 
an  adjournment,  no  inconvenience  was  experienced 
in  leaving  it  so  far  undetermined.  But  the  next 
morning,  Bishop  Seabury  sent  a  message  to  Bishop 
White  and  requested  a  private  interview  with  him 
previous  to  the  hour  when  the  convention  was  to  as- 
semble. "  It  took  place  at  Dr.  Moore's,  where  he 
lodged.  He  opened  his  mind  to  this  effect  —  That, 
from  the  course  taken  by  the  two  other  bishops  on 
the  preceding  day,  he  was  afraid  they  had  in  contem- 
plation the  debarring  of  him  from  any  hand  in  the 
consecration  expected  to  take  place  during  this  con- 
vention ;  that  he  could  not  submit  to  this,  without  an 
implied  renunciation  of  his  consecration,  and  con- 
tempt cast  on  the  source  from  which  he  had  received 
it;  and  that  the  apprehended  measure,  if  proposed 
and  persevered  in,  must  be  followed  by  an  entire 
breach  with  him,  and,  as  he  supposed,  with  the 
Church  under  his  superintendence."  l 

In  the  belief  of  Bishop  White,  no  such  design  was 
contemplated ;  and  he  assured  him  that  in  no  event 
would  he  himself  take  any  part  in  the  approaching 
consecration  if  Bishop  Seabury  should  be  precluded 
from  uniting  in  the  act.  It  would  not  weaken  the 
English  chain  to  bring  in  another  link,  and  while  he 
had  been  desirous  of  fulfilling  his  implied  engagement 
to  his  own  consecrators,  he  was  now  resolved  to  stand 
by  the  Scottish  succession,  the  validity  of  which  he 
had  never  doubted.  His  opinion  of  the  rule  which 
had  been  adopted  was  unchanged,  but  as  Bishop  Sea- 

1  Memoirs  of  P.  E.  Church,  p.  162. 


424  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

bury  intimated  that  he  should  not  be  tenacious  of 
the  mere  matter  of  the  presidency,  and  would  waive 
his  right  to  it,  he  suggested  that  one  of  them  should 
be  absent  from  the  meeting  that  morning  and  allow 
the  rule  to  be  rescinded.  Accordingly  Seabury,  as 
more  directly  interested,  absented  himself,  and  the 
change  was  made,  "  reference  being  had  to  the  presi- 
dency of  the  house  in  the  last  convention."  No  other 
business  was  done  that  day,  and  the  bishops  adjourned 
after  this  action. 

It  will  be  doing  Bishop  Seabury  fuller  justice  to 
produce  here  his  own  record  of  the  affair  :  "  At  this 
Convention,  Eight  Reverend  Dr.  Claggett,  of  Mary- 
land, was  consecrated  bishop,  in  Trinity  Church,  by 
Bishops  Provoost,  White,  Madison,  and  Seabury.  All 
glory  be  ascribed  to  God  for  his  goodness  to  his 
Church  in  the  American  States.  In  his  goodness  I 
confide  for  the  continuing  of  that  holy  Episcopate 
which  is  now  begun  to  be  communicated  in  this 
country.  May  it  redound  to  his  glory,  and  the  good 
of  his  Church,  through  Jesus  Christ.  Amen.  At  the 
last  General  Convention,  at  Philadelphia,  it  was  pro- 
posed by  Bishop  White,  and  agreed  to  by  me,  that 
the  eldest  Bishop  present  (to  be  reckoned  from  his 
consecration)  should  be  president  of  the  House  of 
Bishops.  The  agreement  seemed  to  be  displeasing  to 
Bishops  Provoost  and  Madison,  and  it  was  proposed 
by  them  that  the  presidency  should  go  by  rotation, 
beginning  from  the  North.  I  hadno  inclination  to 
contend  who  should  be  the  greatest  in  the  kingdom 
of  heaven;  and  therefore  readily  consented  to  relin-' 
^quish  the  presidency  into  the  hands  of  Bishop  Pro-" 

grace  on  this  occasion, 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  425 

and  beseech  him  thatjio  self  -exaltation  or  envy  of 
^otHersmay  ever"lead Ine  intodebate  and  contention^ 
but  thliTTln^vever  be  willing  to  be  the  least  "when 
flie  peaceofliis  Church  requires  it." I 

-The" bishop  returned  after  the  adjournment  of  the 
convention  and  spent  a  few  more  days  among  his 
kindred  and  friends  at  Hempstead,  and  then  crossed 
over  the  Sound  at  Sands's  Ferry  to  New  Rochelle, 
where  he  passed  the  night.  As  he  entered  Connecti- 
cut, he  commenced  a  visitation  to  the  parishes  in 
Fairfield  County,  preaching  first  at  Horseneck,  and 
proceeding  to  Stamford,  where  he  had  large  congre- 
gations, Sunday,  September  30,  and  confirmed  forty 
persons.  Two  days  later  he  rode  out  to  New  Canaan 
and  confirmed  fifty-two :  "  And  here,"  said  he,  "  I 
parted  with  good  old  Dr.  Dibblee,  who  had  accom- 
panied me  from  Stamford."  In  the  same  week  he 
confirmed  sixty-two  at  Ridgfield,  eight  at  Danbury, 
twenty-eight  at  Redding,  and  sixty-five  at  Norwalk. 

On  the  homeward  journey,  he  met  the  clergy  in 
convocation  at  Huntington,  October  10,  confirmed 
there  thirty-one  persons,  and  advanced  Mr.  Seth 
Hart  to  the  priesthood.  The  candidate  was  presented 
by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Clarke,  rector  of  the  parish,  and  the 
sermon  preached  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Shelton,2  "  a  very 
good  one,"  —  as  the  Bishop  entered  in  his  journal, — 
from  the  text,  "  Receive  ye  the  Holy  Ghost :  whose- 
soever sins  ye  remit,  they  are  remitted  unto  them ; 
and  whosesoever  sins  ye  retain,  they  are  retained." 

Leaving  Huntington,  he  lodged  for  a  night  at  Der- 

1  MS.  Journal. 

2  The  Rev.  Philo  Shelton  and  the  Rev.  Abraham  L.  Clarke  married 
sisters,  daughters  of   Philip  Nichols,  Esq.,  the  first  lay  deputy  from 
Connecticut  to  the  General  Convention. 


426  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

by  with  Dr.  Mansfield,  and  reached  East  Haven  soon 
enough  the  next  day  to  preach  and  hold  a  confirma- 
tion, as  he  did  also  successively  in  North  Guilford, 
Guilford,  and  Killing  worth.  He  thus  recorded  his 
gratitude  on  the  completion  of  this  circuit  of  duties. 
"  October  20th,  I  got  safe  home  to  New  London,  hav- 
ing travelled  in  this  journey  four  hundred  and  fifty 
miles,  confirmed  two  hundred  and  sixty-five  persons, 
and  preached  twenty  sermons.  Glory  to  God  for  his 
goodness  to  me.  Make  me,  0  my  God,  ever  ready  to 
serve  thy  Church  without  regard  to  my  own  profit  or 
honor,  but  merely  to  thy  glory,  through  Jesus  Christ. 
Upon  my  return  home,  I  found  my  family  in  deep 
affliction  for  the  death  of  my  son-in-law,  Mr.  Charles 
Nicoll  Taylor,  who  died  in  September  last  at  Norfolk 
in  Virginia." 

The  winter  passed  away  with  very  little  necessity 
for  strictly  Episcopal  service.  But  his  mind  was  at 
work,  and  he  left  nothing  untried  which  was  calcu- 
lated to  promote  the  unity  and  advancement  of  the 
Church.  The  following  letter  to  his  friend,  William 
Stevens,  Esq.,  speaks  of  a  plan  which  he  had  devised 
for  bringing  the  laity  together  to  confer  on  subjects 
of  mutual  advantage  :  — 

NEW  LONDON,  April  9^,  1793. 

DEAE,  SIR,  —  My  last  letter  to  you  was  of  the  28th  of 
December,  1792.  At  that  time  I  drew  on  you  for  <£25  Ster- 
ling in  favour  of  Mr.  William  Ustick,  Junior.  I  am  now  to 
inform  you  that  I  have  drawn  on  you  this  day  for  .£12  10s. 
Sterling  by  three  Bills  of  Exchange  in  favour  of  the  same 
gentleman,  Mr.  William  Ustick,  Junior,  or  Order. 

The  state  of  the  Church  in  this  country  is  much  the  same 
as  when  I  wrote  last.  The  great  difficulty  is  to  get  the  sev- 
eral congregations  to  consider  themselves  as  parts  of  one 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  427 

body,  and  to  act  in  unison  with  each  other.  While  they 
were  missions  of  the  Society  in  England,  their  whole  Eccle- 
siastical business  was  transacted  with  that  Society,  as  dis- 
tinct congregations  ;  and  they  seldom  had  much  intercourse 
with  each  other.  A  spirit  of  independency  on  each  other 
hath,  by  that  means,  been  introduced,  which  can  only  Iw 
overcome  by  time  and  patience.  In  order  to  remedy  this  in- 
convenience, which  weakens  the  influence  of  the  Church,  I 
have  prevailed  with  some  of  the  principal  and  more  under- 
standing laity  of  the  several  congregations  to  meet  annually 
on  this  subject ;  that  by  conversing  on  it,  and  on  such  sub- 
jects within  their  line  as  relate  to  the  general  good  of  the 
Church,  they  may  become  acquainted  with  each  other  and 
with  the  general  state  of  the  several  congregations.  I  have 
reason  to  hope  this  will  promote  union  and  intimate  connec- 
tion among  them. 

We  have  just  had  accounts  by  the  Feb.  packet  from  Fal- 
mouth  of  war  between  Great  Britain  and  France.  I  pray 
God  to  keep  you  in  peace  and  unity  at  home,  and  foreign 
enemies,  I  think,  cannot  hurt  you. 

Please  to  remember  me  to  Mr.  Boucher.  I  am,  Dear  Sir, 
with  great  affection,  your  very  humble  servant.  S. 

On  the  way  to  attend  the  diocesan  convention  at 
Middletown,  Bishop  Seabury  was  put  in  imminent 
peril  by  the  fall  of  his  horse  in  the  sulky,  and  one  of 
his  eyes  badly  hurt.  He  escaped  without  permanent 
injury,  and  mentioned  it  with  gratitude  to  God  as  the 
first  accident  which  had  befallen  him  in  all  his  jour- 
neyings.  This  was  on  the  1st  of  June,  1793,  and 
the  next  day,  being  Sunday,  he  preached  in  the  new 
and  unfinished  church  at  East  Haddam,  and  tarried 
for  three  nights  with  a  friend  in  that  place.  In  com- 
pany with  his  host,  a  lay  delegate  to  the  convention, 
his  son  Charles  Seabury,  who  had  come  on  from  New 
London  to  join  him,  and  the  Rev.  S.  Blakeslee,  he 


428  LIFE   AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

reached  Middletown,  and  became  the  guest  of  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Jarvis.  The  convention  met  the  next 
morning,  Wednesday,  eighteen  clergymen,  besides  the 
bishop,  and  twenty-one  laymen,  being  present,  and, 
after  divine  service  and  a  sermon,  he  admitted  Daniel 
Burhans,  and  his  own  son,  Charles  Seabury,  to  the 
order  of  Deacons.1  The  usual  business  was  soon  com- 
pleted, but  he  had  a  duty  yet  to  perform,  and  on 
Sunday,  the  9th,  advanced  Edward  and  Solomon 
Blakeslee,  Russel  Catlin,  and  David  Butler  to  the 

1  The  ambition  of  choirs  to  exhibit  themselves  on  great  occasions  was 
apparent  nearly  a  century  ago.  It  was  thought  to  be  the  proper  thing 
to  honor  a  visitation  of  the  bishop  with  unusual  music,  though  it  should 
be  at  the  expense  of  devotion.  About  this  time  a  singing-master  came 
to  Middletown,  and  being  employed  by  the  Congregationalists,  he  cast 
aside  the  rich  old  tunes  familiar  to  all  worshippers,  and  introduced  a 
new  set  of  repeating  ones  which  attracted  the  attention  of  some  of  the 
young  people  of  the  Episcopal  Church.  An  arrangement  was  made 
whereby  the  singing-master  agreed  to  teach  them,  and  appear  with  his 
whole  school  in  church  on  the  day  of  the  bishop's  visit,  and  conduct 
the  music.  The  chefd'ceuvre  of  the  occasion  was  a  tune  set  to  the  133d 
Psalm,  in  metre,  the  second  stanza  reading  :  —  . 

"  True  love  is  like  that  precious  oil 
Which,  poured  on  Aaron's  head, 
Kan  down  his  beard,  and  o'er  his  robes 
Its  costly  moisture  shed." 

All  the  parts,  tenor,  treble,  alto,  bass,  appeared  in  solo,  and  the  words, 
"ran  down  his  beard  —  ran  down  his  beard,"  were  repeated  no  less 
than  eight  times.  The  teacher  was  delighted,  and  flattered  himself  that 
the  bishop  had  heard  no  such  music  this  side  of  London.  He  was 
anxious  to  know  what  he  thought  of  it,  and  a  gentleman  standing  by 
offered  to  inquire.  So,  stepping  into  the  adjoining  room  where  he  was 
sitting  with  a  number  of  clergymen  and  others,  he  said,  "  Bishop,  what 
did  you  think  of  our  singing?"  "I  am  not  prepared  to  give  an  opinion," 
was  his  reply;  "my  sympathies  were  so  much  excited  for  poor  Aaron 
that  I  did  not  listen  attentively  enough  to  be  a  competent  judge." 
"And  why  such  sympathy  for  Aaron?"  "Why,  Sir,  I  was  afraid 
that  by  running  down  his  beard  eight  times  they  would  not  leave  a  single 
hair  on  his  face." 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  429 

priesthood,  and  in  the  afternoon  preached  and  con- 
firmed eight  persons,  —  the  ordination  sermon  having 
been  delivered  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Ives.  He  visited 
Chatham  and  Middle  Haddam,  confirming  in  the  first- 
named  place  nineteen,  and  in  the  other  twenty-five, 
and  was  home  again  in  New  London  on  the  13th  of 
June.  His  son  now  in  orders  was  taken  as  his  assist- 
ant, and  relieved  him  of  many  parochial  duties. 


430  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 


CHAPTER  XXIY. 

OFFICE  FOR  BURIAL  OF  INFANTS,  AND  POINTED  PSALTER;  VISITA- 
TION TO  RHODE  ISLAND,  AND  DISORDER  IN  NARRAGANSETT;  CON- 
SECRATION OF  CHURCHES,  AND  CONVOCATION  IN  NEW  MILFORDJ 
LETTER  TO  WILLIAM  STEVENS,  AND  CONVENTION  IN  NEW  HAVEN; 
EPISCOPAL  ACADEMY,  CONVOCATION  IN  CHESHIRE,  AND  CONSE- 
CRATION AT  WATERTOWN;  ANNUAL  CONVENTION,  AND  ESTABLISH- 
MENT OF  THE  ACADEMY. 

A.  D.   1793-1795. 

AMONG  the  liturgical  services  prepared  by  Bishop 
Seabury  was  an  office  for  the  burial  of  infants  "  who 
depart  this  life  before  they  have  polluted  their  bap- 
tism by  actual  sin."  It  was  shorter  than  the  ap- 
pointed office  in  the  Prayer  Book,  and  omitted  the 
anthem  and  lesson.  One  of  the  prayers  followed 
mainly  the  first  in  the  regular  service,  and  the  other 
was  made  up  in  part  of  the  Collects  for  Easter  Even 
and  Easter  Day.  The  same  sheet,  upon  which  the 
original  edition  without  date  was  printed,  contained 
prayers  for  the  legislature  and  courts  of  justice ;  but 
the  office  was  not  probably  used  to  any  great  extent, 
as  it  was  not  set  forth  and  recommended  to  the 
clergy  of  Connecticut.1 

It  is  proper  to  notice  here  another  work  of  a  litur- 

1  A  reprint  was  issued  at  Newburyport,  Mass.,  in  1809,  preceded  by 
a  Service  for  Fast  Day,  the  Catechism,  and  Selections  from  the  Book  of 
Common  Prayer  for  the  use  of  families,  —  the  whole  making  a  little 
32mo  pamphlet  of  32  pages.  See  Appendix  D. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  431 

gical  character  by  Bishop  Seabury,  though  it  was  not 
issued  until  January,  1795.  It  bore  the  title  of  "The 
Psalter  or  Psalms  of  David,  pointed  as  they  are  to  be 
sung  or  said  in  the  Churches,"  that  is,  with  the  mu- 
sical colon  dividing  each  verse  of  the  Canticles  or 
Psalter,  as  in  the  Scotch  and  English  Prayer  Books. 
The  order  for  Morning  and  Evening  Prayer  daily 
throughout  the  year,  with  the  Creed  of  St.  Athana- 
sius,  was  included,  the  rubrics  omitted,  and  the  word 
Priest  substituted  for  Minister  before  the  versicles, 
except  in  the  Litany.  The  chief  variations,  however, 
from  the  authorized  book  were  in  the  imprecatory 
Psalms,  where  he  took  for  his  guide  the  criticisms  and 
opinion  of  those  celebrated  commentators,  Dr.  Ham- 
mond and  Dr.  Home.  "  Supported  by  the  authority 
of  men  so  eminent  for  their  abilities,  learning,  and 
piety,"  said  he  in  his  preface,  "  the  following  edi- 
tion of  the  Psalter  is  published  with  the  alterations 
they  have  recommended,  the  imperative  mood  being 
changed  for  the  future  tense  in  all  the  imprecations 
which  occurred  in  the  Psalms.  Besides  which,  a  few 
old  words  are  changed  for  those  which  are  more  mod- 
ern, and  two  or  three  expressions  hard  to  be  under- 
stood are  altered,  still  retaining  the  spirit  and  mean- 
ing of  the  Psalm." 

This  Liturgy  was  not  in  the  least  degree  intended 
to  supersede  the  Prayer  Book,  and  no  evidence  has 
been  found  that  it  was  ever  followed  for  a  single  day 
in  the  public  worship  of  any  parish  within  the  juris- 
diction of  Seabury.  It  was  probably  designed  for 
private  or  family  use,  and  he  may  have  adopted  this 
method  for  the  purpose  of  meeting  objections,  some- 
times raised  to  the  divine  imprecations  in  this  part  oi 


432  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

Scripture.  "  In  fact,  if  tradition  may  be  trusted,  his 
special  design  in  setting  forth  this  revision  of  the 
Psalms  was  to  quiet  the  mind  of  an  influential  mem- 
ber of  his  congregation,  who  was  a  relation  of 
his." l 

In  company  with  his  daughter  Maria  he  made  an- 
other visitation  to  Rhode  Island,  going  by  water  July 
23,  1793,  and  arriving  at  Newport  after  a  good  pas- 
sage of  eight  hours.  The  first  exercise  of  duty  was  to 
admit  in  Trinity  Church,  on  Sunday,  28th,  Mr.  John 
Usher  to  the  order  of  Deacons,  —  the  same  gentleman 
who  had  hitherto  been  deterred  by  a  brother's  hatred 
and  opposition  from  presenting  himself  for  the  sacred 
office.  He  confirmed  twenty-five  in  the  afternoon  of 
that  day,  and  on  Monday  left  Newport  for  Provi- 
dence, where  the  convention  of  the  Church  in  the 
State  was  soon  to  assemble.  A  troublesome  question 
came  up  for  consideration  at  this  time,  —  the  case  of 
Mr.  Walter  C.  Gardiner,  of  Narragansett,  who  had  re- 
fused to  join  with  the  other  churches  in  Rhode  Isl- 
and and  with  the  majority  of  his  congregation,  in 
acknowledging  the  jurisdiction  of  Bishop  Seabury. 
It  appeared  that  he  had  privately  obtained  a  testi- 
monial and  been  recommended  by  the  Standing  Com- 
mittee of  Massachusetts  to  Bishop  Provoost  for  the 
diaconate,  without  any  concurrence  of  the  congre- 
gation in  Narragansett ;  and  having  been  ordained, 
he  associated  himself  with  the  Church  in  Massachu- 
setts. The  convention  in  Khode  Island  declined  to 
recognize  him  as  one  of  its  clergy,  unless  he  sub- 
scribed to  the  constitution  and  acknowledged  the  su- 
periiitendency  of  Bishop  Seabury,  and  he  was  given 

1  Hart's  Appendix  to  Bishop  Seabury' s  Communion  Office,  p.  62. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  433 

a  limited  time  to  consider  the  matter  and  decide 
upon  the  course  he  would  take. 

The  Church  in  Narragansett  became  very  much 
dissatisfied  with  Mr.  Gardiner,  "  as  no  congregation 
would  attend  with  him  "  for  divine  service,  and  his 
connection  with  it  was  terminated  in  1794.  Bishop 
Seabury  regarded  his  ordination,  in  the  manner  it 
was  secured,  as  an  infringement  of  his  Episcopal 
rights,  and  wrote  a  letter  to  Bishop  White  during  the 
sitting  of  the  General  Convention,  in  1795,  "  respect- 
fully and  affectionately  complaining  of  the  matter." 
It  was  communicated  to  Bishop  Provoost,  who  said, 
"  that  on  receiving  the  letter  from  the  clergy  of  Mas- 
sachusetts, he  had  doubted  of  the  propriety  of  the 
proposal  in  it ;  but  that  on  consulting  the  clergy  of 
New  York,  and  especially  those  in  the  most  intimacy 
with  Bishop  Seabury,  he  was  advised  by  them  to 
compliance ;  but  that  he  perceived  objections  to  such 
conduct  in  individual  congregations,  and  would  ap- 
prove of  a  canon  to  prevent  it.  Such  a  canon  was 
accordingly  prepared  and  passed.  It  is  believed  that 
no  dissatisfaction  remained." 1 

The  convention  finished  its  business  on  the  1st  of 
August,  and  having  advanced  Mr.  Usher  to  the  priest- 
hood, and  confirmed  twenty-eight  persons,  the  bishop 
returned  to  New  London,  intelligence  of  the  illness  of 
one  of  his  sons  rendering  it  necessary  and  hurrying 
him  away. 

He  was  not  long  in  the  quiet  of  his  home,  for  he 
set  out  in  a  sulky,  Thursday,  September  12th,  to 
meet  the  clergy  in  convocation  at  New  Milford,  —  his 
son  Edward  accompanying  him  as  far  as  New  Haven. 

1  Memoirs  of  P.  E.  Church,  p.  172. 
28 


434  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

He  passed  the  Sunday  in  the  latter  place,  officiating 
twice  for  Dr.  Hubbard,  and  confirmed  "  ten  —  eight 
whites  and  two  blacks."  With  Dr.  Hubbard  he  jour- 
neyed to  Stratford,  stopped  there  and  dined  with  Mr. 
Bowden,  and  then  proceeded  to  the  house  of  Mr. 
Shelton,  where  they  lodged  for  the  night,  and  the 
next  day  all  went  to  Newtown,  the  scene,  in  the  time 
of  John  Beach,  of  sharp  religious  controversy,  and 
the  battle-ground  for  great  principles.  He  conse- 
crated the  new  church  in  that  place  on  the  19th,  by 
the  name  of  Trinity,  a  "  large  and  attentive  congre- 
gation "  listening  to  his  sermon  from  the  text,  "  The 
Lord  loveth  the  gates  of  Zion  more  than  all  the 
dwellings  of  Jacob." l  He  made  an  entry  in  his  jour- 
nal thus :  "  The  church  well  finished,  68  feet  in 
length,  in  breadth  48.  Steeple  140  feet  high,  con- 
firmed 31.  A  stranger  presented  me  with  two  dol- 
lars toward  travelling  expences." 

The  bishop  rode  to  New  Milford,  the  limit  of  his 
journey,  on  the  21st;  and  the  following  day,  Sunday, 
preached  twice  for  the  rector  of  the  parish.  The  con- 
vocation met  on  Wednesday,  when  he  consecrated 
"  St.  John's  Church,  being  decently  finished,"  and  de- 
livered the  same  sermon  as  at  Newtown.  Only  eight 
of  the  clergy  were  present,  —  for  an  influenza  had  at- 
tacked many  of  them,  and  disabled  them  so  that  they 
could  not  travel.  Very  little  business  was  done  at 
this  meeting.  The  bishop  started  on  his  return  Fri- 

1  This  church,  built  of  wood,  was  occupied  until  1870.  In  February 
of  that  year  the  present  beautiful  one  of  stone  was  opened,  and  the  au- 
thor, who  preached  the  sermon  on  the  occasion,  by  a  singular  coinci- 
dence selected  the  same  text,  —  not  then  knowing  that  Bishop  Seabury 
had  used  it  for  his  consecration  sermon  three  quarters  of  a  century  be- 
fore. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  435 

day,  and  passing  a  night  at  Derby,  and  the  Sunday 
with  Dr.  Hubbard,  he  was  home  again  by  Tuesday, 
the  last  day  of  the  month,  thankful  to  God  for  the 
favor  of  his  protection  and  the  good  health  of  himself 
and  his  family. 

How  little  can  it  be  realized  at  this  period  that 
such  journeys  were  wearisome,  and  attended  with 
many  hardships  and  sacrifices.  Days  must  be  spent 
on  the  rough  and  hilly  roads  in  going  from  place  to 
place,  and  the  only  compensation  for  lack  of  speed 
and  comfort  in  the  modes  of  conveyance  was  the 
cheerful  hospitality  which  everywhere  awaited  him. 
In  moving  about  among  the  people,  he  was  not  sim- 
ply the  Christian  bishop  and  the  agreeable  compan- 
ion. He  acquired  influence  with  them  by  his  knowl- 
edge of  subjects  outside  of  theology,  and  within  the 
range  of  philosophical  study.  He  was  a  careful  ob- 
server of  new  discoveries  in  science,  and  at  Edin- 
burgh was  a  fellow-student  with  Joseph  Black,  the 
distinguished  chemist,  who  introduced  the  name  and 
the  theory  of  latent  heat,  and  made  and  published 
experiments  which  were  subsequently  applied  to 
great  practical  uses.  No  doubt  Seabury  watched  his 
brilliant  career,  and  profited  by  his  discoveries.1 

1  He  was  once  on  his  way  to  New  York  in  an  old-fashioned  packet, 
when  the  vessel  was  becalmed,  and,  the  weather  being  intensely  hot, 
many  were  sighing  for  a  drink  of  cool  water.  The  bishop  called  for  a 
jug,  filled  it,  hung  it  on  the  shrouds  in  the  sun's  blaze,  and  began  pour- 
ing water  on  it  from  the  long-handled  dipper  with  which  sailors  wet 
their  sails. 

"  What  is  the  old  fool  up  to?  "  said  some  youngsters  standing  by  and 
whispering  among  themselves.  Not  a  word  was  spoken  by  the  bishop, 
but  he  kept  steadily  at  work,  and  after  a  while  took  the  jug  down, 
turned  out  some  of  the  water  into  a  tumbler,  and  offered  it  to  his  critics. 
They  were  amazed  on  finding  it  quite  cold,  never  having  learned  any- 


436  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

In  a  letter  to  his  friend  William  Stevens,  dated  Oc- 
tober 9,  1793,  and  transcribed  in  his  letter-book,  he 
gave  a  brief  account  of  the  condition  and  progress  of 
the  Church  in  Connecticut,  and  referred  with  a  meas- 
ure of  satisfaction  to  his  late  visitation  :  — 

Though  no  great  boasts  can  be  made  of  the  rapid  growth 
of  the  Church  in  this  State,  yet  its  gradual  increase  is  un- 
doubted ;  and  I  flatter  myself  the  union  of  its  congregations 
is  also  growing,  and  with  that  its  weight  and  influence  in  the 
government  and  among  the  people  at  large. 

However,  since  I  have  been  in  Connecticut,  three  new 
congregations  have  arisen.  One  at  East  Haddam,  on  the 
East  bank  of  Connecticut  River,  about  14  miles  from  its 
mouth.  Four  years  ago,  there  was  not  a  Churchman  there  ; 
and  now  they  have  raised  and  enclosed,  and  in  the  course  of 
another  year  will  finish,  an  elegant  wooden  church,  and  do 
now,  in  conjunction  with  a  small  congregation  eight  miles 
distant,  give  a  clergyman  <£87  Sterling  a  year.  He  resides 
among  them.  Their  numbers  are  still  increasing  by  new 
accessions,  and  they  will,  I  trust,  in  a  few  years,  be  a  very 
considerable  congregation.  At  Chatham,  15  miles  higher 
up,  on  the  same  side  of  the  river,  and  at  Hartford,  15  miles 
higher  still,  and  on  the  other  side  of  the  Connecticut,  new 
congregations  are  engaged  in  building  large  and  elegant 
churches,  i.  e.  for  this  country.  These  churches  will  prob- 
ably be  both  finished  by  Christmas,  and  then  they  intend 
to  procure  Clergymen  for  them.  Hartford  is  the  principal 
town  in  the  State  —  the  seat  of  their  government,  and  the 
fortress  of  Presbyterianism :  and  though  a  small  number  of 
Church  people  have  been  long  in  it,  not  more  than  six  fam- 
ilies, their  efforts  to  build  a  church  have  for  these  40  years 
been  baffled  by  the  arts  and  violence  of  the  Presbyterians. 

thing  about  the  process  of  evaporation.  "  There,  young  gentlemen," 
said  he,  "I  think  you  have  found  out  that  I  am  no  fool,  and  that  you 
are  no  philosophers."  The  anecdote  was  widely  circulated  at  the  time, 
and  helped  him  not  a  little  with  young  people. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  437 

Their  influence  there  is  now  over,  and  the  congregation  in 
Hartford  will  probably  become  equal  to  any  in  the  country. 

The  last  month,  in  a  visitation  of  the  Westward  churches, 
I  had  the  pleasure  of  consecrating  a  large  new  church  at 
Newtown,  the  Society's  old  mission  —  68  by  48  feet.  That 
congregation  is  in  a  flourishing  condition,  and  supplied  by 
a  very  worthy  clergyman.  The  Church  at  New  Milford, 
another  old  mission,  was  also  consecrated,  having  never  been 
finished  till  the  last  Summer.  It  is  now  in  a  prosperous 
state,  and  a  good  clergyman  resides  with  them,  who  also 
officiates  at  two  neighbouring  small  churches.  Requesting 
your  prayers  to  Almighty  God  for  me,  wishing  you  health 
and  prosperity,  I  remain  your  most  affectionate  and  obliged 
humble  Servt.  S . 

During  the  winter  he  remained  in  New  London, 
and  devoted  himself  without  interruption  to  the  duty 
of  ministering  to  his  people.  His  son  in  orders  re- 
lieved him  of  a  portion  of  his  work,  but  it  was  chiefly 
in  taking  the  service  on  the  occasions  of  public  wor- 
ship. The  preaching  and  the  spiritual  succors  were 
still  confined  to  him,  and  the  poorest  and  humblest 
parishioner,  when  he  needed  it,  was  sure  to  command 
his  attention. 

With  his  son  Charles,  and  a  lay  deputy  from  his 
parish,  the  bishop  started  Monday  morning,  June  2d, 
1794,  to  attend  the  annual  convention  of  the  Dio- 
cese in  New  Haven.  He  lodged  that  night  at  the 
house  of  Mr.  George  Morgan  in  Killingworth,  —  a 
host  to  whom  he  was  frequently  indebted  for  hospi- 
tality whenever  he  left  New  London  for  a  journey 
westward.  The  convention  met  on  the  4th,  and  the 
main  business  under  consideration  was  the  establish- 
ment of  an  Episcopal  Academy  in  the  State. 

As   far  back  as  May,  1788,  a  committee  was  ap- 


438  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

pointed  by  a  convention  of  lay  delegates  from  the 
several  parishes,  which  met  at  Wallingford,  to  open 
and  solicit  subscriptions  for  an  Episcopal  Academy ; 
and  the  Eev.  Dr.  Hubbard  and  John  Welton,  in  be- 
half of  this  committee,  issued  proposals  the  ensuing 
January,  showing  the  branches  to  be  taught ;  the 
conditions  of  admission  ;  the  freedom  from  religious 
restraint,  except  that  it  was  to  be  under  the  direc- 
tion of  the  Bishop  of  Connecticut ;  and  the  number 
and  character  of  the  governors  to  be  chosen.  No 
subscription  was  to  be  binding  unless  two  thousand 
pounds  should  be  secured ;  and  in  order  to  determine 
the  location  of  the  Academy  two  columns  were  opened, 
one  for  those  who  would  give  absolutely  without  re- 
gard to  the  place  where  it  might  be  fixed,  and  the 
other  for  conditional  subscriptions,  providing  that  it 
be  located  in  a  town  to  be  named  by  the  signers.  It 
shows  the  poverty  of  the  times,  and  yet  the  earnest- 
ness of  the  projectors :  "  That  all  kinds  of  merchant- 
able country  produce,  West  India  goods,  and  lum- 
ber shall  be  received  in  payment  of  subscriptions  at 
cash  prices.  For  which  purpose  receivers  will  be  ap- 
pointed at  the  public  landings  and  principal  towns." 

The  amount  required  was  not  obtained  within  the 
limited  period  of  twelve  months,  and  while,  for  that 
time,  the  scheme  failed,  it  was  kept  in  mind  and 
taken  up  again  at  a  convocation  of  the  clergy  in  1792, 
with  better  prospects  of  success.  The  bishop  was  the 
more  urgent  on  the  subject  from  the  conviction  that 
the  religious  predilections  of  the  youth  of  the  Church 
should  not  be  endangered  in  the  academical  course. 
The  disadvantages  under  which  they  were  compelled 
to  labor  at  Yale  College,  on  account  of  their  faith,  had 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  439 

deterred  him  from  seeking  for  his  son  Charles  the 
educational  privileges  of  that  institution,  and  conse- 
quently he  had  given  him  the  benefit  of  a  private 
course  of  study,  first  with  Dr.  Mansfield  of  Derby, 
and  afterwards  with  Dr.  William  Smith  of  Narra- 
gansett. 

The  matter  was  brought  before  the  convention 
of  the  clergy  and  lay  delegates  for  the  first  time  at 
New  Haven,  and  took  the  definite  shape  of  a  refer- 
ence to  a  committee  with  power  to  address  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Church  in  the  State  on  the  importance  of 
establishing  an  Episcopal  Academy,  to  present  them 
with  a  plan  of  it,  "  and  also  with  subscription  papers 
for  the  purpose  of  raising  a  sufficient  fund."  Seabury 
made  an  entry  in  his  journal  concerning  this  con- 
vention which  sheds  more  light  upon  the  origin  of 
the  institution:  "Among  other  things,  the  subject  of 
an  Episcopal  Academy  was  canvassed,  and  measures 
were  directed  for  opening  one  at  Stratford,  under  the 
direction  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  John  Bowden.  A  son  of  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Bostwick,  deceased,  of  Great  Barrington,  was 
ordered  to  be  placed  at  this  Academy,  to  be  bred  for 
the  Church  at  the  charge  of  the  clergy  —  for  his  ex- 
pences  I  became  accountable,  Mr.  Bowden  kindly 
offering  to  bestow  his  tuition  gratuitously." 

The  bishop  continued  in  New  Haven  for  several 
days  after  the  adjournment  of  the  convention,  and  on 
Saturday,  the  7th,  some  symptoms  of  a  paralytic  nat- 
ure attacked  him  in  the  street  and  alarmed  him  very 
much,  Though  weak  and  languid,  he  was  enabled  to 
go  through  his  duties  the  next  day,  Whitsunday,  and 
to  preach  twice  in  Trinity  Church,  advancing  Daniel 
Burhans  to  the  priesthood,  and  confirming  thirty- 


440  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

five  persons.  He  made  this  unusual  note  on  the  oc- 
casion :  "  Dr.  Hubbard  consecrated  the  Eucharist." 
He  had  designed  to  visit  Woodbridge  on  Monday,  a 
town  a  few  miles  distant,  but  a  rain  prevented  him, 
and  he  entered  in  his  journal  the  remarkable  fact : 
"  This  is  the  first  appointment  in  which  I  have  failed 
since  I  have  been  in  Connecticut,  —  such  has  been 
the  goodness  of  God."  He  was  at  West  Haven  and 
Northford  during  the  week,  and  confirmed  in  each 
place  eighteen  persons.  On  Friday  he  proceeded  to 
North  Guilf ord,  —  one  of  the  parishes  forming  the 
charge  of  Mr.  Butler,  —  and  here  three  gentlemen 
from  Branford  came  to  him  to  explain  some  matters 
respecting  their  church,  which  had  been  thrown  into 
confusion  by  Mr.  James  Sayre1  and  Mr.  Kalph  Isaacs. 
"  I  hope,"  said  he,  "  matters  will  return  to  a  bet- 
ter state.  But  I  fear  their  fickleness,  or  rather  the 
insinuations  of  Mr.  Isaacs."  He  spent  the  Sunday 
in  North  Guilf  ord,  preached  twice  and  confirmed 
twenty-four,  and  the  next  day  at  Guilf  ord  adminis- 
tered the  rite  of  confirmation  to  four  more. 

All  the  places  above  named  were  in  the  county  of 
New  Haven,  and  most  of  them  could  be  visited  with- 
out going  out  of  his  way  in  returning  to  New  London. 
At  Guilf  ord  his  son,  the  clergyman,  joined  him,  and 
with  Mr.  Butler  they  went  to  Killingworth,  where  he 
"  preached  in  the  afternoon  in  the  meeting-house," 
and  confirmed  twenty-seven  persons. 

In  just  a  month  after  reaching  home,  the  bishop 
spent  a  Sunday,  July  18,  in  the  neighboring  town  of 
Norwich,  and  confirmed  forty-one,  chiefly  young  peo- 
ple. It  was  the  last  of  his  appointments  for  the  sum- 

1  Mr.  Sayre  died  Feb.  18,  1798. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  441 

mer,  and  he  took  a  little  time  to  rest  and  regain  his 
strength. 

The  public  mind  is  easily  drawn  off  from  sacred  to 
secular  things.  It  is  human  nature  to  be  inclined  to 
the  world  and  its  passing  events,  and  to  let  religion 
stand  aside  in  seasons  of  political  excitement  and 
peril.  Men  are  then  much  more  ready  to  take  up 
arms  in  defense  of  measures  that  affect  the  national 
honor  or  the  rights  of  citizenship  than  to  be  valiant 
for  the  truth  and  for  the  Kingdom  which  endureth 
forever.  Seabury  had  cause  to  lament  the  temporary 
decline  of  interest  in  spiritual  things,  and  the  slow 
growth  of  the  Church  in  his  jurisdiction,  on  account 
of  events  which  absorbed  the  popular  attention.  This 
was  explained  in  a  letter  to  William  Stevens,  dated — 

NEW  LONDON  October  10,  1794. 

VERY  DEAR  SIR,  —  I  wish  I  had  the  materials  for  a  long 
and  pleasing  letter  to  you.  But  so  much  is  the  attention  of 
almost  every  one  taken  up  with  public  and  political  matters 
— -  some  exulting,  others  dejected,  at  the  successes  of  the 
French  arms  on  the  continent  of  Europe,  and  at  the  prospect 
of  war  between  Great  Britain  and  this  country  —  that  relig- 
ion seems  to  be  neglected,  and  that  neglect,  I  fear,  increases. 
Indeed  I  am  apprehensive  our  Church  is  not  in  so  flourish- 
ing a  state  as  it  has  been.  The  number  of  candidates  for 
Holy  Orders  is  at  present  small,  and  the  vacant  congregations 
remiss  in  supplying  themselves  with  resident  clergymen. 

I  hope  it  will  please  God,  of  his  mercy,  to  put  a  stop  to  de- 
vastation and  bloodshed  in  Europe,  and  prevent  the  further 
spreading  of  war :  Then,  I  trust,  the  minds  of  men  will  return 
to  the  consideration  of  that  point  on  which  their  true  inter- 
est depends. 

I  am  preparing  some  manuscript  discourses  for  Mr. 
Boucher.  I  hope  I  shall  be  ready  to  send  them  off  by  the 
first  of  November.  Remember  me  to  him.  He  will  then 
hear  particularly  from  me. 


442  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

I  am  now  to  inform  you  that  I  have  drawn  on  you  for  25 £ 
Sterl.  by  three  Bills  of  Exchange  of  this  date,  in  favour  of 
Mr.  William  Ustick  Jun.  or  order. 

With  the  highest  regard  and  esteem,  I  remain,  dear  sir, 
your  affect,  and  devoted  humble  servt. 

S.  S.  Bp.  Connect.  £c. 

On  Thursday,  Nov.  6,  he  set  out  from  New  London 
to  meet  the  clergy  in  convocation  at  Cheshire,  and 
took  his  usual  route  through  East  Haddam  and  Mid- 
dletown.  He  remained  over  Sunday  with  Dr.  Jarvis, 
preached  for  him,  and  administered  confirmation  to 
nine  persons.  At  this  period  he  never  travelled 
alone,  but  always  had  an  attendant,  either  a  clergy- 
man or  one  of  his  sons,  even  when  he  rode  in  his 
sulky,  as  on  this  occasion.  Dr.  Jarvis  accompanied 
him  to  Cheshire,  and  the  convocation  met  on  the 
12th,  eighteen  of  the  clergy  being  present.  There 
was  a  public  service  that  day,  and  the  bishop  preached 
to  a  large  congregation  and  confirmed  thirty- three. 
An  entry  in  his  journal  at  this  time  may  be  quoted 
for  the  example  it  commends :  "  The  communion  was 
large  and  the  communicants  very  devout,  reflecting 
great  honor  on  their  worthy  Rector." 

The  "  worthy  Rector  "  was  the  Rev.  Mr.  Ives,  who 
accompanied  him  on  Saturday  to  Waterbury,  that 
parish  being  now  vacant,  leaving  Dr.  Hubbard  to 
supply  his  own  place  in  Cheshire.  Here  the  bishop 
passed  the  Sunday,  preached,  administered  the  Holy 
Communion  with  the  assistance  of  his  attendant,  and 
confirmed  thirty-seven  persons.  The  next  day  they 
were  joined  by  Dr.  Hubbard  and  others,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  Westbury  (Watertown),  and  in  the  presence 
of  seven  clergymen  and  a  "  very  large  and  attentive 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  443 

congregation/'  he  consecrated  the  new  church  in  that 
place  on  Tuesday,  and  confirmed  thirty-two  persons. 
"  An  adult  and  an  infant  were  baptized  and  a  woman 
churched  "  at  the  same  time,  and  the  communion  ad- 
ministered. The  church  was  consecrated  by  the  name 
of  the  former  one,  and  the  bishop  said  of  it  in  his 
journal  that  it  "  is  not  only  a  decent  but  an  elegant 
building,  and  was  completely  finished  in  two  sum- 
mers. It  reflects  great  honor  on  this  congregation, 
that  though  their  old  church  was  in  good  repair,  yet 
standing  inconvenient  for  them,  they  have  by  volun- 
tary subscription  in  a  short  time  finished  one  of  the 
best  churches  in  Connecticut,  and  zealously  dedicated 
it  to  the  service  of  God." 

In  his  homeward  journey  he  lodged  a  night  at  Wal- 
lingford,  and  another  at  East  Haddam,  holding  a  ser- 
vice in  the  latter  place,  and  confirming  twenty-one 
persons.  As  he  was  riding  along  on  the  last  day  of 
his  return,  the  axle-tree  of  his  sulky  broke  at  Hadlyme 
without  doing  him  any  injury,  but  he  was  obliged  to 
borrow  a  saddle  and  a  bridle  and  proceed  on  horse- 
back for  the  rest  of  the  way  to  New  London. 

These  minute  details  may  not  seem  to  be  necessary, 
but  they  are  important  as  illustrating  the  history  of 
the  times,  and  developing  the  Episcopal  life  of  the 
first  bishop  of  Connecticut.  The  prayer  to  God  in 
the  Litany,  that  he  would  be  "  pleased  to  preserve  all 
who  travel  by  land  or  by  water,"  was  not  less  appli- 
cable to  the  condition  of  things  one  hundred  years 
ago,  and  it  was  framed  for  such  a  condition,  than  to 
the  manifold  perils  by  rapid  transit  in  these  days  of 
steamboats  and  railroads.  If  more  time  than  now  was 
used  to  reach  different  points,  more  time  was  given 


444  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

to  each  parish  in  a  visitation,  and  more  was  needed, 
for  the  congregations  were  few  in  number  and  of  min- 
isters there  were  scarcely  enough  to  feed  the  flocks. 
Often  the  bishop  was  obliged  to  officiate  and  conduct 
the  whole  service,  that  a  rector  might  not  leave  his 
charge  to  assist  him ;  or  he  would  take  the  service  and 
send  the  rector  to  preach  and  administer  the  sacra- 
ments in  a  neighboring  parish  where  the  church  was 
kept  open  by  lay  readers. 

The  winter  was  again  spent  in  New  London,  and 
nothing  of  unusual  importance  arrested  his  attention. 
The  signs  of  the  times  foreboded  an  incoming  flood 
of  speculations  in  morals,  religion,  and  politics,  and 
the  best  way  to  meet  it,  as  he  taught  his  clergy,  was 
to  "  hold  fast  the  form  of  sound  "  words  and  cherish 
the  "  faith  once  delivered  to  the  saints."  He  was  es- 
pecially earnest  in  his  defense  of  the  doctrine  of  the 
Holy  Trinity,  and  appeared  to  feel  in  his  latest  days 
that  a  time  would  come  when  in  New  England  it 
would  be  extensively  corrupted  and  denied.  He  es- 
teemed creeds  to  be  safeguards  of  true  religion,  and 
had  been  desirous  of  retaining  that  of  St.  Athanasius 
in  our  Liturgy,  for  the  reason  that  it  was  generally 
received  by  the  Church,  and  had  been  of  great  ser- 
vice in  preserving,  as  in  an  inviolable  casket,  the 
precious  verities  of  the  Christian  faith.  Any  teach- 
ing that  obscured  the  doctrine  of  the  incarnate  Word, 
or  made  it,  like  the  natural  world,  a  subject  for  hu- 
man reasonings,  was  heretical  and  of  dangerous  tend- 
ency. Men  were  certain  to  fall  into  error  if  they 
attempted  to  speculate  on  the  mysteries  of  the  God- 
head, or  to  reduce  them  to  the  ordinary  forms  of 
logical  conclusion. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  445 

The  annual  convention  of  the  Church  in  Connecti- 
cut was  held  at  Stratford,  June  3,  1795.  Bishop 
Seabury  set  out  from  New  London  to  attend  it  on 
Monday,  the  25th  of  May,  in  company  with  his  son 
Charles,  and  having  been  disappointed  in  his  inten- 
tion to  visit  Branford,  he  proceeded  to  New  Haven, 
and  "  continued  with  Dr.  Hubbard  over  Trinity  Sun- 
day." "  The  only  business  of  consequence,"  said  he, 
"  at  this  convention  related  to  the  Episcopal  Academy, 
which  had  been  long  projected.  The  difficulty  which 
now  presented  was  its  location;  Stratford,  Walling- 
ford,  and  Cheshire  being  competitors  for  it,  and  mak- 
ing generous  offers  for  its  establishment  in  their  town. 
The  business  was  finally  referred  to  a  committee  ap- 
pointed by  the  convention  to  meet  on  a  fixed  day  in 
Hamden."  The  Academy  was  ultimately  located  in 
Cheshire,  and  was  the  first  educational  institution  in 
this  country  organized  under  the  auspices  of  a  dio- 
cesan convention.  It  was  the  design  of  the  founders 
to  erect  it  into  a  college,  and  the  idea  was  entertained, 
especially  after  his  death,  of  giving  it  the  name  of 
the  first  bishop  of  Connecticut.  But  no  charter,  ex- 
tending its  powers,  could  be  obtained  from  the  Legis- 
lature, and  it  was  left  as  it  has  been  since,  to  do  its 
good  work  for  the  Church  as  a  school  where  young 
men  are  prepared  for  College  or  for  the  active  busi- 
ness of  life. 

This  convention,  which  was  the  last  that  Seabury 
attended,  resolved  to  send  "  three  deputies  only  of 
each  order"  to  the  General  Convention,  which  was 
to  meet  in  Philadelphia  in  the  ensuing  September. 
After  the  adjournment  he  continued  several  days 
in  Stratford,  and  on  Sunday  admitted  Caleb  Child, 


446  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

Alexander  V.  Griswold,  and  Manoah  Smith  Miles  to 
the  order  of  Deacons.  The  next  morning,  attended 
by  a  number  of  the  clergy,  he  went  to  Tashua,  where 
he  consecrated  the  new  church,  and  then  set  his  face 
homeward,  taking  Derby  and  Woodbridge  in  the 
way.  "  In  this  journey  of  one  hundred  and  fifty 
miles  out  and  home,  my  good  God  was  graciously 
pleased  to  preserve  me  from  accidents  and  sickness, 
to  give  me  much  satisfaction  in  the  pleasing  appear- 
ance of  the  congregations  I  visited,  and  in  the  sight 
of  many  valued  friends.  I  kept  no  exact  account 
of  the  number  confirmed,  but  suppose  them  to  have 
been  at  least  one  hundred  and  fifty  at  New  Haven, 
Stratford,  Tashua,  Derby,  and  Woodbridge."  l 

1  MS.  Journal. 


OF  SAMUEL   SEABURY.  447 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

VISITATION,  AND  CONVENTION  IN  RHODE  ISLAND;  GENERAL  CON- 
VENTION IN  PHILADELPHIA,  AND  NO  DEPUTIES  FROM  NEW  ENG- 
LAND; OFFENSIVE  PAMPHLET  AND  COURSE  OF  ITS  AUTHOR;  CON- 
SECRATION OF  CHURCHES,  AND  LAST  VISITATION;  DEATH  AND 

FUNERAL;  REMOVAL  AND  RE-INTERMENT  OF  HIS  REMAINS;  CHAR- 
ACTER AND    CONCLUSION. 

A.  D.  1795-1796. 

SHOKTLY  after  reaching  home,  Bishop  Seabury  vis- 
ited the  churches  in  Rhode  Island,  going  by  stage  to 
Providence,  and  preaching  there  on  Sunday,  the  5th 
of  July,  and  administering  the  rite  of  confirmation. 
There  were  only  four  parishes  or  cures  at  this  time, 
including  Narragansett,  in  the  whole  State,  and  in 
two  of  these  the  elements  of  discord  and  controversy 
had  been  so  rife  as  to  occasion  him  much  displeasure, 
and  render  his  visits  to  them  unsatisfactory.  They 
required  more  of  his  care  and  attention  than  the 
peaceful  churches ;  and  submitted  to  him  questions, 
the  decision  of  which,  no  matter  what  it  might  be, 
was  sure  to  leave  some  seeds  of  discontent  in  one 
party  or  the  other. 

The  convention  was  held  in  Bristol  on  Wednesday, 
whither  he  went  in  a  chaise,  accompanied  by  Mr. 
Clarke,  who  preached  the  sermon,  and  the  next  day, 
having  finished  the  business,  he  proceeded  in  the 
afternoon  to  Newport,  passed  the  Sunday  with  Mr. 


448  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

Smith,  and  preached  and  confirmed  in  Trinity  Church. 
His  visitation  was  completed  by  taking  the  Narragan- 
sett  region  in  his  return,  and  spending  a  few  days 
among  those  whom  he  wished  to  consult  about  the 
interests  of  their  church,  and  to  persuade,  if  possi- 
ble, to  cease  the  unhappy  divisions  which  had  been 
hindering  its  prosperity.  No  minister  was  there  to 
meet  him,  but  he  found  in  George  Brown,  who  lent 
him  a  horse  on  which  he  rode  to  New  London,  and  in 
other  zealous  Episcopalians,  followers  of  the  late  Dr. 
McSparran,  friends  who  were  glad  to  give  him  enter- 
tainment and  to  unite  in  any  efforts  for  the  renewal 
of  religious  services  under  his  superintendence.  He 
officiated  in  the  parish  church  on  Sunday  and  admin- 
istered confirmation,  and  having  rested  till  Tuesday 
at  the  house  of  a  good  mother  in  Israel,  he  set  out  for 
his  home,  thirty-six  miles  distant,  and  reached  it  in 
safety,  thankful  that  he  had  been  mercifully  pre- 
served in  this  journey  of  one  hundred  and  fifty-seven 
miles,  and  permitted  to  lay  his  hands  in  the  apostolic 
rite  on  more  than  one  hundred  persons. 

The  General  Convention  met  in  Philadelphia  Sep- 
tember 8,  1795,  and  four  bishops,  sixteen  clerical,  and 
eight  lay  deputies  were  present.  There  was  no  rep- 
resentation from  the  Church  in  any  of  the  New  Eng- 
land States,  and  from  New  York  but  two  clergymen 
attended  besides  Bishop  Provoost,  who  had  been  ap- 
pointed to  preach  the  sermon.  It  was  not  from  a 
lack  of  interest  in  the  proceedings,  or  an  unwilling- 
ness to  take  the  journey,  that  Seabury  and  his  dep- 
uties failed  to  attend.  But  in  consequence  of  the 
prevalence  of  epidemic  disease,  intercourse  between 
New  York  and  Philadelphia  had  been  suspended  by 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  449 

public  authority  some  time  before  the  meeting,  and 
there  was  no  way  of  getting  from  Connecticut  to  the 
convention  directly  without  going  through  New 
York. 

It  has  been  seen  in  a  previous  chapter  that  Sea- 
bury  wrote  to  Bishop  White,  complaining  of  intrusion 
into  his  jurisdiction,  and  though  he  was  not  there  to 
advocate  it,  a  canon  was  adopted  at  this  time  forbid- 
ding congregations  in  future  from  uniting  themselves 
with  the  Church  in  any  other  State  or  diocese  than 
that  within  the  limits  of  which  they  are  located.  The 
session  continued  for  ten  days,  and  on  the  Sunday 
after  it  began,  the  Rev.  Robert  Smith,  D.  D.,  was 
consecrated  Bishop  of  South  Carolina,  —  a  State 
which  originally  entered  into  the  general  compact 
with  the  condition  that  no  bishop  should  be  imposed 
upon  it,  and  there  was  reason  to  fear  that  a  sinister 
design  lay  at  the  bottom  of  the  request  for  his  con- 
secration. It  was  founded  on  a  circular  letter  by  "  a 
select  committee  "  of  two  clergymen  and  one  layman, 
addressed  to  the  members  of  the  Church  in  South 
Carolina,  threatening  that  when  once  the  power  of 
administering  confirmation  and  conferring  orders  had 
been  secured,  Virginia  and  that  State  would  secede 
from  the  general  Church  if  the  absolute  negative  of 
the  House  of  Bishops,  asked  for  by  the  Eastern  clergy, 
should  be  admitted  into  the  constitution.  It  was  as- 
certained upon  inquiry  that  the  offensive  sentiments 
of  the  printed  circular  had  not  been  adopted  by  the 
convention  of  South  Carolina,  and  therefore  the 
bishops  proceeded  to  consecrate  Dr.  Smith,  Bishop 
White  acting  as  the  consecrator  and  the  other  three 
joining  in  the  ceremony. 

29 


450  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

On  Friday,  the  fourth  day  of  the  session,  the  Eev. 
Dr.  Andrews,  of  Pennsylvania,  called  the  attention  of 
the  House  of  Deputies  to  a  pamphlet  lately  published, 
entitled,  "  Strictures  on  the  Love  of  Power  in  the 
Prelacy,  by  a  member  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Association  in  the  State  of  South  Carolina."  He  de- 
clared it  to  be  "  a  violent  attack  upon  the  doctrines 
and  discipline  of  our  Church/'  and  libelous  in  its 
character.  "  The  personal  abuse  in  the  licentious 
pamphlet,"  says  White,  "was  principally  leveled  at 
Bishop  Seabury ;  and  the  ground  of  it  was  his  sup- 
posed authorship  of  a  printed  defence  of  the  Episco- 
pal negative,  written  and  acknowledged  by  another 
respectable  divine  of  the  Church."  l 

The  author  of  this  pamphlet  was  a  member  of  the 
House  of  Deputies,  Eev.  Dr.  Henry  Purcell,  of 
Cha/rleston,  a  signer  also  of  the  circular  threatening 
secession ;  and  that  body  fixed  a  day  when,  in  a  com- 
mittee of  the  whole,  the  subject  was  seriously  consid- 
ered, and  a  resolution  adopted  that  the  pamphlet 
contained  "  very  censurable  and  offensive  matter." 
The  further  action  would  have  been  immediate  ex- 
pulsion had  it  not  been  for  the  interposition  of  the 
bishops  and  the  presentation  of  a  paper  by  Dr.  Pur- 
cell,  in  which  he  made  ample  apology,  and  professed 
his  sorrow  for  the  publication.  Whereupon  the  House 
of  Deputies  decided  that  in  their  opinion  the  paper 
should  be  "  accepted  as  a  satisfactory  concession." 

But  subsequent  events  proved  the  insincerity  of  his 
penitence,  though  "  accompanied  with  a  profusion  of 
tears,"  for  on  the  rising  of  the  convention,  this  bel- 
ligerent clergyman,  burning  with  indignation  at  Dr. 

1  Memoirs  P.  E.  Church,  p.  177. 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  ,451 

Andrews,  who  had  fearlessly  exposed  his  conduct, 
challenged  him  to  mortal  combat,  and  the  civil  au- 
thorities consequently  arrested  him  and  bound  him 
over  to  keep  the  peace.  Whatever  may  have  been 
the  cause,  whether  mortification  at  this  shameful  af- 
fair, or  indifference  to  the  interests  and  legislation  of 
the  Church,  it  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  from  that 
time  till  1814,  South  Carolina  had  no  representative 
in  any  General  Convention. 

It  was  well,  perhaps,  that  Bishop  Seabury  and  his 
deputies  were  not  present,  for  it  left  his  vindication 
in  the  hands  of  those  who  could  not  but  feel  after 
this  that  his  name  was  all  the  brighter  when  set  in 
the  light  of  truth.  He  had  probably  received  a  full 
account  of  the  proceedings  before  he  started  from 
New  London,  Friday,  October  16,  to  meet  the  clergy 
in  convocation  at  Bristol  or  East  Plymouth.  His  son 
Charles  accompanied  him  as  far  as  East  Haddam,  and 
remained  to  be  present  on  Sunday  at  the  consecration 
of  the  new  church,  called  St.  Stephen's,  the  rain  hav- 
ing prevented  it  from  being  consecrated  on  the  day 
appointed  in  the  previous  week.  The  bishop  made 
an  entry  in  his  journal  in  connection  with  this  service, 
which  shows  his  practice  and  the  view  he  entertained 
of  the  validity  of  lay  baptism. 

"  An  adult  person,  who  had  in  his  infancy  received 
baptism  among  the  Presbyterians,  was  in  the  congre- 
gation baptized  by  me.  After  sermon  he  presented 
himself  for  confirmation,  and  came  to  the  Holy  Com- 
munion. Eight  others  were  confirmed  with  him,  and 
most  of  them  communicated  that  day.  From  a  full 
persuasion  of  the  invalidity  of  lay  baptism,  and  that 
the  ordination  of  the  Presbyterian  ministers  is  no 


452  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

better  than  lay  ordination,  and  that  consequently 
their  baptism  is  no  better  than  lay  baptism,  I  have 
never  hesitated  to  baptize  any  persons  who  have  been 
uneasy  with  their  situation  under  that  baptism  and 
have  applied  to  me.  Their  number  has  been  consid- 
erable in  Connecticut.  May  God's  grace  ever  be  with 
them." 

His  son  left  the  next  morning  and  returned  to 
New  London,  and  the  Rev.  S.  Blakeslee  accompanied 
him  to  Middletown,  where  the  rain  detained  them  for 
the  night.  They  reached  East  Plymouth  soon  enough 
Wednesday  for  the  religious  services,  which  were  to 
open  with  the  consecration  of  the  new  church  in  that 
place.  Bishop  Seabury  preached  the  sermon,  —  one 
of  his  best,  —  which  was  highly  commended  by  the 
large  number  of  clergymen  in  attendance.  The  Rev. 
Alexander  V.  Griswold,  who  had  been  officiating  in 
the  parish,  was  advanced  to  the  priesthood  and  ap- 
pointed its  rector,  and  this  was  the  last  ordination 
by  the  first  bishop  of  Connecticut.  It  proved  to  be 
the  ordination  of  one  who  was  afterwards  elevated  to 
the  apostolic  office,  and  held  the  great  See  of  what 
was  known  as  the  Eastern  Diocese.  Confirmation 
was  administered,  and  the  public  services  having  closed 
the  clergy  gathered  together  for  their  business,  and, 
as  the  bishop  said,  "  peace  and  harmony  and  joy  were 
with  them." 

They  adjourned  to  meet  the  next  day  at  Harwin- 
ton,  where  another  new  but  small  church  had  been 
built,  and  was  awaiting  consecration.  The  attendance 
of  people  here  was  not  large,  and  some  inconvenience 
was  experienced  by  messengers  being  sent  to  call  out 
persons  who  "  had  strayed  and  gotten  into  the  church," 


OF   SAMUEL   SEABURY.  453 

and  who  were  wanted  to  assist  in  the  election  of  two 
deacons,  which  "  the  Presbyterian  minister  had  con- 
trived "  to  take  place  at  that  time.  Among  the 
doings  of  the  convocation  was  a  resolution  requesting 
the  bishop  to  compose  two  Collects  for  the  use  of  the 
clergy :  one  to  be  used  at  the  sitting  of  the  General 
Assembly,  and  the  other  to  be  used  at  the  courts. 
Such  Collects  may  have  been  privately  authorized  be- 
fore, but  this  resolution  was  in  accordance  with  an 
act  of  the  recent  General  Convention,  empowering 
bishops  to  issue  forms  of  prayer  and  thanksgiving  for 
extraordinary  occasions. 

With  three  of  his  clergy  he  proceeded  to  Litchfield 
on  the  23d,  and  rested  there  till  Sunday  from  a 
fatiguing  journey  over  rough  and  hilly  roads.  Mr. 
Baldwin,  a  former  rector  of  the  parish,  being  with 
him,  "  preached  in  the  morning,  a  very  good  sermon, 
both  in  matter  and  manner,  to  a  very  full  congrega- 
tion, and  the  communion  was  administered  to  a  large 
number  of  communicants."  He  made  a  further  entry 
in  his  journal  thus :  "  Under  the  prudent  care  of  the 
rector,  Mr.  Butler,  the  congregation  appears  to  be 
increasing  in  number,  and  in  piety  and  devotion.  I 
preached  in  the  afternoon,  and  administered  confirma- 
tion to  ninety-nine  persons,  chiefly  young,  the  future 
hope  of  the  Church." 

He  had  now  gained  the  utmost  limit  of  his  visita- 
tion, and  was  ready  to  set  out  on  his  return  home.. 
The  clergy  were  kind  enough  to  be  his  attendants  as 
he  passed  from  place  to  place,  lodging  a  night  with 
one  and  then  with  another.  On  Wednesday,  the  28th 
of  the  month,  he  was  in  Wallingford,  where  he 
preached,  and  confirmed  nineteen  persons,  and  the 


454  LIFE   AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

next  day,  at  North  Haven,  confirmed  twenty  more. 
Here  he  was  met  by  Dr.  Hubbard,  who  conducted  him 
to  his  residence  in  New  Haven,  where  he  tarried  for 
the  remainder  of  the  week,  preached  on  Sunday,  and 
on  Monday,  in  company  with  the  Rev.  Mr.  Miles,  pro- 
ceeded to  Branford.  "  Passing  through  East  Haven," 
said  he,  "  my  horse  fell  and  threw  me,  or  rather 
obliged  me  to  jump  out  of  the  sulky.  By  the  mercy 
of  God  I  escaped  with  only  a  slight  bruise  on  my 
face."  At  Branford  he  held  a  service  and  confirmed 
twenty-one  persons,  and  this  was  the  last  occasion  on 
which  he  administered  the  rite,  as  the  visitation  which 
he  thus  closed  was  his  last.  Mr.  Miles  accompanied 
him  all  the  way  to  New  London,  where  he  arrived  on 
the  4th  of  November,  after  an  absence  of  almost  four 
weeks.  "  In  this  journey,"  said  he,  "  I  travelled  one 
hundred  and  thirty-four  miles,  preached  ten  times, 
administered  the  communion  five  times,  and  confirmed 
one  hundred  and  ninety-eight  persons." l 

Some  indications  of  declining  health  were  noticed 
on  this  visitation  with  concern,  but  his  naturally 
sound  and  vigorous  constitution  and  his  unimpaired 
mental  faculties  afforded  encouragement  to  believe 
that  his  life  might  be  prolonged  for  years.  It  pleased 
Divine  Wisdom  to  order  otherwise.  The  winter 
months  were  well-nigh  ended,  during  which  he  had 
been  quietly  attending  to  his  parochial  duties,  when 
death  suddenly  came  to  him  and  terminated  his  faith- 
ful labors.  He  spent  the  afternoon  of  Thursday,  the 
25th  of  February,  in  making  visits  to  several  of  his 
parishioners,  and  in  the  evening  walked  with  his 
daughter  Maria  to  the  house  of  one  of  his  wardens, 

1  MS.  Journal. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  455 

the  father-in-law  of  his  son  Charles.  He  complained, 
when  there,  of  an  extreme  pain  in  his  breast,  and,  at 
the  moment  of  rising  and  retiring  from  the  tea-table, 
fell  in  an  apoplectic  fit,  and  expired  in  forty  minutes 
after  he  entered  the  house.  A  young  physician  near 
by,  Dr.  Coit,1  was  first  summoned  to  his  side,  and 
dared  not  take  the  responsibility  of  using  the  lancet 
without  the  judgment  and  concurrence  of  an  older 
practitioner.  But  all  agreed  that  it  was  a  hopeless 
case,  beyond  the  reach  of  human  skill,  one  of  those 
sudden  deaths,  in  the  providence  of  God,  from  which 
some  good  men  never  pray  to  be  delivered.  The 
funeral  was  attended  from  the  church  on  Sunday,  and 
this  circumstance,  and  the  impediments  of  travelling 
at  that  season  of  the  year,  joined  with  the  few  facili- 
ties for  conveying  intelligence,  prevented  the  clergy 
of  the  diocese  from  gathering  in  mourning  and  sorrow 
around  his  grave.  A  sermon  was  preached,  but  the 
only  entry  in  the  parish  register  is  in  these  words  : 
"  February  28,  1796.  Buried  by  the  Eev.  Mr.  Tyler 
of  Norwich,  Right  Rev.  Samuel  Seabury,  D.  D.,  Bishop 
of  Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island." 

The  interment  was  in  the  old  public  cemetery  of 
New  London,  and  a  table  monument  of  gray  marble 
was  placed  over  his  grave,  with  an  inscription  written 
by  his  life-long  friend,  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  Bowden. 
In  the  autumn  of  1849,  his  remains  were  disinterred, 
and  deposited  in  a  crypt  prepared  for  their  reception 
under  a  division  of  the  chancel  of  the  new  church, 
then  approaching  completion,  and  a  handsome  monu- 
ment, in  the  form  of  an  altar-tomb,  underneath  a 
canopy  surmounted  by  a  mitre,  was  erected  at  the 

1  Father  of  Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  W.  Coit. 


456  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 

joint  expense  of  the  diocese  and  parish,  over  his  final 
resting-place.1  A  period  of  three-score  years  had 
brought  great  changes  in  the  relative  condition  of 
things.  The  unpretending  wooden  church,  "  elegant " 
for  the  day,  built  under  his  direction  and  consecrated 
by  him,  had  given  place  to  a  noble  structure  of  stone, 
which  will  be  associated  in  all  tune  to  come  with  the 
memory  of  a  man  who  had  the  honor  to  live  and  die 
the  first  bishop  of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United 
States  of  America. 

If  he  had  lived  fourteen  months  longer,  he  would 
have  seen  the  Kev.  Dr.  Edward  Bass  reflected  Bishop 
of  Massachusetts,  and  receiving  consecration,  Bishop 
Claggett,  the  friend  who  esteemed  Seabury  highly, 
and  adopted  his  mitre  as  a  badge  of  office,  joining  in 
the  act  of  consecration,  and  thus  perpetuating  the 
Scottish  succession.  If  he  had  lived  over  into  the 
present  century,  he  would  have  seen  elevated  to  the 
Episcopate,  as  the  successor  of  Dr.  Bass,  his  own  com- 
panion and  grand  ally  in  the  efforts  to  settle  the 
Church  in  this  country  upon  the  old  foundations, 
though  Dr.  Parker  died  three  months  after  being  con- 
secrated, and  did  not  perform  a  single  Episcopal  act. 
He  would  have  seen  his  friend,  Benjamin  Moore, 
elected  and  consecrated  Bishop  of  New  York;  and 
Isaac  Wilkins,  the  fearless  loyalist,  who  was  compelled 
to  leave  the  land  he  loved  and  retire  to  the  British 
provinces,  back  again  in  Westchester  County,  ordained 
a  priest  by  Bishop  Provoost,  chosen  president  of  the 
Lower  House  of  the  General  Convention,  and  estab- 
lished in  the  rectorship  of  the  very  parish  where  he, 
as  a  missionary  of  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of 

1  Appendix  B. 


OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY.  457 

the  Gospel,  was  serving  when  the  troubles  of  the 
Ke volution  broke  out  and  drove  him  from  the  field. 

It  must  be  admitted  that  Seabury  was  a  man  for 
the  times,  far-reaching  in  his  views,  of  a  bold  and 
resolute  spirit,  who  thought  and  spoke  for  himself  and 
spoke  what  he  thought.  He  entertained  a  high  opin- 
ion of  the  Church  whose  most  dignified  office  he  sus- 
tained, because  he  believed  that  she  was  "  built  upon 
the  foundation  of  the  prophets  and  apostles,  Jesus 
Christ  himself  being  the  chief  corner-stone."  He 
greatly  deplored  the  growing  indifference  and  infidel- 
ity of  the  age,  and  did  everything  in  his  sphere  to 
counteract  them.  "Theological  niceties,  and  conject- 
ural divinity,  were  ever  his  aversion,  because  too  re- 
fined and  visionary  either  to  be  felt  or  comprehended. 
His  one  object,  and  therefore  his  chief  care,  was  to 
explain  the  great  articles  of  faith  and  rules  of  life, 
what  we  must  believe  and  how  we  must  live,  that  we 
may  be  eternally  happy. 

His  own  vital  sense  of  religion  infused  itself  into 
his  discourses,  and  animated  them  with  the  same  di- 
vine passion  that  warmed  his  own  breast.  His  mind 
was  too  great  to  seek  popular  applause ;  he  only 
wished  to  have  his  labors  well  received,  that  he  might 
do  good ;  that  he  might  prevail  upon  people  to  seek 
their  own  spiritual  welfare ;  that  he  might  promote 
the  cause  of  Christ's  Church  and  advance  pure  and 
undefiled  religion.  Confident  of  the  solid  grounds  on 
which  his  religion  rested,  he  was,  agreeable  to  the 
natural  firmness  of  his  mind,  inflexible  in  his  princi- 
ples :  these  he  accounted  sacred  ;  from  which  on  no 
occasion  would  he  allow  himself  to  deviate,  yet  with 
a  graceful  ease  he  could  give  up  anything  but  the 


458  LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE 

truth,  and  even  that  he  would  support,  if  possible, 
without  giving  offense." l 

His  scanty  income,  received  largely  from  England, 
would  not  allow  him  to  be  charitable  to  the  extent  of 
his  heart's  desires,  and  yet  he  was  charitable  in  other 
ways  than  by  scattering  pecuniary  gifts.  Besides 
watching  as  the  rector  of  the  parish  for  the  spiritual 
welfare  of  the  needy  and  the  unfortunate,  he  applied 
his  medical  knowledge  gratuitously  for  their  relief  in 
seasons  of  sickness,  so  that  it  was  recorded  of  him, 
when  he  died,  by  one  of  the  public  journals  of  the 
day,  "  the  poor  will  miss  him  as  a  physician  and  a 
friend."  If  no  pomp  surrounded  his  burial,  the  grief 
and  tears  of  the  many  to  whom  he  thus  ministered 
testified  to  a  better  sentiment  than  the  hollow  pride 
which  indulges  in  a  vain  show  and  makes  a  mockery 
of  human  sorrow. 

It  may  be  needless  to  add  that  he  was  a  great  loss 
to  the  Church  in  Connecticut  at  that  crisis,  as  he  was 
to  the  Church  in  the  whole  country.  Those  who  had 
come  to  know  him  best  as  a  bishop  held  him  in  the 
highest  estimation,  and  appreciated  warmly  his  emi- 
nent talents  and  excellent  traits  of  character.  "  This 
day,  my  brethren  of  the  clergy,"  said  Mr.  Jarvis  in 
his  sermon,  "  we  are  able  and  as  willing  to  declare 
one  to  another,  and  to  the  world,  how  happy  we  were 
under  him  as  our  spiritual  father,  brother,  compan- 
ion, and  friend.  With  manners  engaging,  and  by  a 
method  judicious  and  easy,  he  would  commonly  col- 
lect our  opinions,  and  if  different  in  any  matter,  bring 
them  together,  and  so  accommodate  them  to  his  own, 

1  Discourse  before  a  Special  Convention  in  Trinity  Church,  New  Haven, 
by  Rev.  Abraham  Jarvis,  A.  M.,  May  5,  1796,  pp.  21,  22. 


OF   SAMUEL  SEABURY.  459 

as,  with  very  few  exceptions,  to  maintain  a  most 
pleasing  harmony  and  union  among  us.  His  visita- 
tions to  all  the  churches  in  his  diocese  were  frequent, 
more  so  perhaps  than  consisted  with  his  health,  usu- 
ally preaching  wherever  he  went.  The  people  always 
received  him  with  pleasure,  and  a  numerous  audience 
heard  him  gladly." 

The  friends  who  had  stood  by  him  in  his  darkest 
trials,  and  shared  in  some  of  the  bitter  persecutions 
which  he  endured  for  his  loyalty  to  the  king,  kept 
him  in  remembrance,  and  followed  him  with  interest 
and  affection  to  the  end  of  his  days.  It  has  been  seen, 
that  after  the  independence  of  the  colonies  was  ac- 
knowledged and  the  Federal  Constitution  established, 
he  transferred  his  allegiance  to  the  new  government 
in  his  native  country,  and  was  as  sincere  and  con- 
scientious in  its  support  as  before  he  had  been  in  re- 
sisting the  Revolution  and  vindicating  the  rights  of 
British  subjects  under  the  crown  of  England.  He 
made  no  undue  complaints,  but  he  had  reason  to  feel 
that  his  loyalty  had  not  been  properly  rewarded  ;  and 
one  of  his  foreign  correspondents,  Jonathan  Boucher, 
who  sympathized  with  him,  and  thought  him  a  man 
of  such  transcendent  abilities  as  to  be  an  ornament 
and  a  blessing  to  any  country,  said  of  him  with  a 
touch  of  pathos  and  a  little  exaggeration  :  "As  the 
Bishop  of  Connecticut,  he  was  supported  by  an  hum- 
ble eleemosynary  pittance  contributed  by  a  few  pri- 
vate friends  in  England,  and  in  February,  1796,  died 
as  unnoticed  as  he  had  lived.  Farewell,  poor  Sea- 
bury  !  However  neglected  in  life,  there  still  lives 
one  at  least  who  knew  thy  worth  and  honors  thy 
memory  !  " l 

1  Boucher's  Thirteen  Discourses  on  the  American  Revolution,  p.  557. 


460    LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  SAMUEL  SEABURY. 

His  family,  of  course,  was  left  with  no  worldly 
wealth ;  but  the  inheritance  of  his  virtues  was  a  price- 
less treasure.  Three  sons  and  three  daughters  lived 
to  maturity,  and  some  of  them  died  before  him ;  but 
Charles,  the  youngest  child,  who  married  a  daughter 
of  Eos  well  Saltonstall,  of  New  London,  was  the  only 
son  who  perpetuated  his  honored  name.1  He  suc- 
ceeded him  in  the  rectorship  of  the  parish,  and  re- 
tained it  for  twenty  years,  though  at  the  disadvan- 
tage of  coming  after  a  father  who  had  much  more 
brilliant  acquirements,  and  greater  powers  to  attract 
and  fascinate  men. 

The  stature  and  personal  bearing  of  a  public  man 
who  lived  nearly  a  century  ago  must  be  wholly  learned 
from  tradition  and  contemporary  records.  It  was  ob- 
served, when  the  grave  of  the  bishop  was  opened  in 
1849,  that  his  frame  displayed  extraordinary  physical 
power ;  and  one  who,  because  he  was  born,  brought 
up,  and  ministered  forty  years  in  the  parish  at  New 
London,  had  good  opportunities  of  gathering  reminis- 
cences, has  written  thus :  "  Bishop  Seabury  was  not 
in  person  very  tall,  but  stout,  robust,  and  massive. 
His  presence  and  bearing  inspired  reverence,  and  his 
clear  and  sonorous  voice  added  much  to  make  him 
impressive  and  commanding.  Such  he  was  :  and  I 
will  only  add  that  it  is  time  pitiful  detraction  should 
come  to  an  end,  and  all  Churchmen  should  unite  in 
that  tribute  to  his  memory  which  his  character  and 
service  justly  deserve."  2 

1  The  late  Rev.  Samuel  Seabury,  D.  D.,  well  known  as  a  vigorous 
writer  and  profound  theologian,  was  a  son  of  Charles ;  and  the  Rev.  Wil- 
liam J.  Seabury,  D.  D.,  the  only  son  of  Samuel,  and  great  grandson  of 
the  bishop,  is  now  Professor  of  Ecclesiastical  Polity  and  Law  in   the 
General  Theological  Seminary  at  New  York. 

2  Hallam's  Annals  of  St.  James's  Church,  New  London,  pp.  74,  75. 


APPENDIX. 


APPENDIX  A. 


N.  YOKK,  May  22,  1766. 

REVD.  SIR,  —  The  Clergy  of  the  Province  of  New  York 
having  agreed,  in  conjunction  with  some  of  our  brethren  of 
Connecticut  and  New  Jersey,  to  hold  voluntary  and  annual 
conventions  in  the  province  of  N.  York,  for  the  sake  of  con- 
ferring together  upon  the  most  proper  methods  of  Promot- 
ing the  welfare  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  the  interest 
of  religion  and  virtue,  and  also  to  keep  up  as  a  body  an  ex- 
act correspondence  with  the  Honorable  Society,  we  embrace 
with  pleasure  this  opportunity,  which  our  first  meeting  hath 
furnished  us  with,  to  present  our  duty  to  the  ven'ble  Soci- 
ety, and  doubt  not  but  this,  our  voluntary  union  for  these 
important  purposes,  will  meet  with  their  countenance  and  ap- 
probation. With  the  greatest  satisfaction  we  assure  the  So- 
ciety that  the  Church  in  this  Province  is  in  as  good  a  state 
as  can  be  expected,  considering  the  peculiar  disadvantages 
under  which  it  still  labours.  We  cannot  omit  condoling  with 
the  Society,  upon  the  great  loss  which  the  Church  has  sus- 
tained in  the  death  of  Messrs.  Wilson  and  Giles,  who  per- 
ished by  shipwreck  near  the  entrance  of  Delaware  Bay. 
From  the  Character  of  these  two  Gentlemen  we  had  pleased 
ourselves  with  the  prospect  of  having  two  worthy  clergymen 
added  to  our  number ;  which  to  our  great  grief  we  find  too 
small  to  supply  the  real  wants  of  the  people  in  these  colo- 
nies. This  loss  brings  to  our  mind  an  exact  calculation, 
made  not  many  years  ago,  that  not  less  than  one  out  of  five 
who  have  gone  home  for  Holy  Orders  from  the  northern  Col- 


464  APPENDIX. 

onies  have  perished  in  the  attempt,  10  having  miscarried  out 
of  51 ;  This  we  consider  as  an  incontestible  argument  for  the 
necessity  of  American  Bishops,  and  we  do  in  the  most  earn- 
est manner  beg  and  intreat  the  Ven'ble  Society  to  whose 
piety  and  care  under  God  the  Church  of  England  owes  her 
very  being  in  most  parts  of  America,  that  they  would  use 
their  utmost  influence  to  effect  a  point  so  essential  to  the 
real  interest  of  the  Church  in  this  wide  extended  country. 
As  we  esteem  it  our  indispensable  duty  to  give  the  Society 
ev'ry  information  relative  to  the  state  of  religion  in  this 
Country,  we  are  now  to  inform  them  that  there  are  at  pres- 
ent a  great  many  Independent  and  Presbyterian  teachers  as- 
sembled at  this  place  to  the  number  of  about  60  and  many 
more  expected  who  call  themselves  a  synod  and  we  are  cred- 
ibly informed,  that  the  grand  point  they  have  in  view,  is  to 
apply  to  the  general  assembly  of  the  Kirk  of  Scotland,  to 
use  their  utmost  influence  with  his  majesty  and  the  British 
parliament  that  they  may  be  incorporated  or  established,  and 
endowed  with  most  ample  privileges  and  immunities.  As 
we  foresee  the  greatest  mischiefs  from  this  scheme,  should  it 
succeed  we  humbly  assure  ourselves,  the  Society  will  use 
such  metho.ds  as  they  think  proper  to  prevent  these  aspiring 
men  from  accomplishing  their  pernicious  designs  ;  With  the 
warmest  sentiments  of  gratitude  we  acknowledge  the  Soci- 
ety's constant  care  and  attention  to  the  interests  of  Religion 
and  of  our  most  excellent  Church,  and  we  beg  leave  to  assure 
them  that  we  shall  jointly  and  severally  use  our  best  en- 
deavours to  answer  their  pious  and  benevolent  purposes. 
We  are  Revd-  Sir  the  Society's  and  your  most  dutiful  and 
most  obdt.  Servants  SAMUEL  JOHNSON, 

President  of  the  Convention. 
ABRM.  JAR  vis,  SAMUEL  SEABURY, 

RICHD.  CHARLTON,         ROBT.  McKEAN, 
SAML-  AUCHMUTY,  CHAS.  INGLIS, 

MYLES  COOPER,  LEO.  CUTTING, 

JOHN  OGILVIE,  HARRY  MUNRO, 

SAML.  COOKE,  EPHM.  AVERY. 

THOS.  B.  CHANDLER. 


APPENDIX.  465 


APPENDIX  B. 


THE  inscription  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Bowden  on  the  monu- 
ment in  the  public  cemetery  reads  as  follows  :  — 

Here  lieth  the  body  of 
SAMUEL   SEABURY,   D.  D., 

Bishop  of  Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island, 
Who  departed  from  this  transitory  scene,  February  25,  1796, 

In  the  sixty-eighth  year  of  his  age. 

Ingenious  without  pride,  learned  without  pedantry, 

Good  without  severity,  he  was  duly  qualified  to  discharge  the  duties 

of  the  Christian  and  the  Bishop. 
In  the  pulpit,  he  enforced  religion  ;  in  his  conduct, 

he  exemplified  it. 
The  poor  he  assisted  with  his  charity ;  the  ignorant  he 

blessed  with  his  instruction. 
The  friend  of  man,  he  ever  desired  their  good ; 

The  enemy  of  vice,  he  ever  opposed  it. 

Christian !  dost  thou  aspire  to  happiness  ? 

Seabury  has  shown  the  way  that  leads  to  it. 

The  monument,  subsequent  to  the  removal  of  the  remains 
of  the  bishop,  was  transferred  and  fixed  "  within  the  enclos- 
ure on  the  north  side  of  the  present  church."  According  to 
the  inscription  the  Bishop  was  one  year  older  at  the  time  of 
his  death  than  appears  from  the  date  of  his  birth.  It  has 
been  said  that  he  was  not  inclined  to  make  his  age  public. 
A  good  woman  in  Litclifield,  on  one  of  his  visitations  to 
that  parish,  put  to  him  the  direct  question,  "  Bishop,  how 

30 


466  APPENDIX. 

old    are  you  ? "   and  was    no   wiser  when    he    answered, 
"  Madam,  I  am  old  enough  to  be  a  better  man  than  I  am." 

A  tablet,  in  the  form  of  an  obelisk,  was  originally  placed 
near  the  pulpit  in  the  old  church,  and  after  the  erection  of 
the  new  one  it  was  removed  to  the  chapel  in  the  basement, 
where  it  now  stands.  The  epitaph  is  not  to  be  commended, 
and  in  one  of  its  expressions  is  a  fair  subject  of  criticism :  — 

SACRED 

May  this  marble  long  remain 
(The  just  tribute  of  affection) 

to  the  memory 
Of  the  truly  venerable  and  beloved 

Pastor  of  this  Church, 

THE  RIGHT  REVEREND  SAMUEL   SEABURY,   D.  D., 

Bishop  of  Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island, 

Who  was  translated  from  earth 

to  heaven 
February  25,  1796, 

In  the  sixty-eighth  year  of  his  age  and  twelfth  of  his  consecration ; 
but  still  lives  in  the  hearts  of  a  grateful  diocese. 

On  the  slab  above  the  tomb  in  the  church  is  engraved :  — 

The  Right  Rev.  Father  in  God, 
SAMUEL  SEABURY,  D.  D., 
First  Bishop  of  Connecticut, 

And  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United  States  ; 
Consecrated  at  Aberdeen,  Scotland,  Nov.  14,  1784; 

Died  Feb.  25,  1796;  aged  67. 

The  Diocese  of  Connecticut  recorded  here 

its  grateful  memory  of  his  virtues  and  services, 

A.  D.  1849. 

And  the  brass  plate  inserted  in  its  upper  surface  has  an 
inscription  prepared  by  the  late  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  Farmer 
Jarvis,  as  follows :  — 


APPENDIX.  467 


Sub  pavimento  altaris 

Ut  in  loco  quietis  ultimo  usque  ad  magni  diei  judicium 
Exuviee  mortales  praesulis  admodum  reverendi  nunc  restant, 

SAMUELIS   SEABURY,    S.  T.  D.,  Oxon., 
Qui  primus  in  rempublicam  novi  orbis  Anglo- Americanam 

Successionem  apostolicam, 
E.  Scotia  trans tulit  XVIII.  Kal.  Dec.  A.  D.  CIQIQCCLXXXIV. 

Diocesis  sua 

laborum  et  angustiarum  tarn  chari  capitis  nunquam  oblita 

in  ecclesia  nova  S.  Jacobi  majoris  Neo  Londinensi  olim  sede  sua 

hoc  monumentum  nunc  demum  lougo  post  tempore  honoris  causa 

anno  salut.  nost.  CIOIOCCCXLIX  ponere  curavit. 

The  following  is  a  translation :  — 

"  Under  the  pavement  of  the  altar,  as  in  the  final  place  of  rest 
until  the  judgment  of  the  great  day,  now  repose  the  mortal  remains 
of  the  Right  Rev.  Prelate,  Samuel  Seabury,  D.  D.,  Oxon.,  who  first 
brought  from  Scotland,  into  the  Anglo- American  Republic  of  the 
New  World,  the  Apostolic  Succession,  Nov.  14,  1784.  His  diocese, 
never  forgetful  of  the  labors  and  trials  of  so  dear  a  person,  in  the 
new  church  of  S*  James  the  greater  at  New  London,  formerly  his 
See,  now  at  last,  a  long  time  afterward,  has  taken  care  to  place  this 
monument  to  his  honor  in  the  year  of  our  salvation,  1849." 

Elsewhere,  the  name  of  Seabury  and  his  apostolic  mission 
have  not  been  forgotten.  One  of  the  eleven  double-light 
windows  in  the  nave  of  S*  Paul's  Church,  within  the  walls, 
at  Rome,  Italy,  was  placed  to  his  memory,  with  an  inscrip- 
tion commemorating  the  fact  of  his  being  the  first  of  the 
bishops  of  the  holy  Catholic  Church  in  America,  with  the 
dates  of  his  consecration  at  Aberdeen,  and  of  his  death,  — 
concluding  with  the  expressive  words  FIDEM  SERVAYIT.  It 
was  the  gift  of  Mr.  J.  C.  Hooker,  an  American  residing  in 
Rome. 


468  APPENDIX. 

The  new  chancel  of  S*  Andrew's  Church,  Aberdeen,  will 
have  a  very  large  east  window  in  five  divisions,  a  memorial 
of  Bishop  Seabury,  of  his  three  consecrators,  and  also  of 
Bishop  William  Skinner,  the  late  Primus.  One  of  the  di- 
visions will  be  filled  with  the  aid  of  contributions  from  the 
diocese  of  Connecticut,  and  duly  inscribed  to  the  memory 
of  Seabury, 


APPENDIX.  469 


APPENDIX  0. 


A  PEINTED  copy  of  the  charge  was  found  among  the  pa- 
pers left  by  Bishop  White,  and  the  following  note  in  his 
handwriting  appeared  on  the  blank  pages  at  the  end.  I  am 
indebted  to  the  courtesy  of  Mr.  Thomas  H.  Montgomery, 
a  grandson  of  the  bishop,  for  a  photo-lithographed  copy. 

Those  measures  began  with  the  author's  pamphlet,  enti- 
tled "  The  Case  of  the  Episcopal  Churches  in  the  United 
States  considered." 

The  circumstances  attached  to  that  publication  are  the 
following :  — 

The  congregations  of  our  Communion  throughout  the  U. 
States  were  approaching  to  Annihilation.  Altho'  within 
this  city,  three  episcopal  clergymen,  including  the  Author, 
were  resident  and  officiating ;  the  Church  over  the  rest  of 
the  State,  had  become  deprived  of  their  clergy  during  the 
war,  either  by  Death,  or  by  Departure  for  England.  In  the 
eastern  States,  with  two  or  three  exceptions,  there  was  a 
cessation  of  the  exercises  of  the  Pulpit ;  owing  to  the  neces- 
sary disuse  of  the  Prayers  for  the  former  civil  Rulers.  In 
Maryland  and  in  Virginia,  where  the  Church  had  enjoyed 
civil  Establishments,  on  the  ceasing  of  these,  the  Incumbents 
of  the  Parishes,  almost  without  exception  ceased  to  officiate. 
Further  South,  the  condition  of  the  Church  was  not  better, 
to  say  the  least.  At  the  time  in  question,  there  had  oc- 
curred some  circumstances,  which  prompted  the  hope  of  a 
discontinuance  of  the  War ;  but,  that  it  would  be  with  the 
acknowledgment  of  American  Independence,  there  was  little 
reason  to  expect. 


470  APPENDIX. 

On  the  6th  of  August,  1782,  the  Congress,  as  noticed  on 
their  printed  Journal  of  that  day,  received  a  communication 
from  Sir  Guy  Carleton  and  Admiral  Digby,  dated  the 
2d  of  that  month,  which  gave  the  first  opening  of  the 
prospect  of  peace.  The  pamphlet  had  been  advertised  for 
sale  in  the  "  Pennsylvania  Packet  "  of  the  sixth,  and  some 
copies  had  been  previously  handed  by  the  author  to  a  few  of 
his  friends.  This  suspended  the  intended  proceedings  in 
the  business ;  which,  in  the  opinion  of  the  author,  would 
have  been  justified  by  necessity,  and  by  no  other  considera- 
tion. 

It  was  an  opinion  commonly  entertained,  that  if  there 
should  be  a  discontinuance  of  military  operations,  it  would 
be  without  the  Acknowledgment  of  Independence  as  hap- 
pened after  the  severance  of  the  Netherlands  from  the 
crown  of  Spain.  Of  the  like  issue  there  seemed  probable 
causes,  in  the  feelings  attendant  on  disappointed  efforts  for 
conquest ;  and  in  the  belief  cherished,  that  the  successes  of 
the  former  colonists  would  be  followed  by  dissentions,  in- 
ducing return  to  the  domination  of  the  Mother  Country. 
Had  the  War  ended  in  that  way,  our  obtaining  of  the  suc- 
cession from  England  would  have  been  hopeless.  The  rem- 
nant of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  Scotland,  labouring  under 
penal  laws  not  executed,  would  hardly  have  regarded  the 
bringing  down  on  themselves  of  the  Arm  of  Government. 
Fear  of  the  like  offence  would  have  operated  in  any  other 
quarter  to  which  we  might  have  had  recourse.  In  such  a 
case,  the  obtaining  of  the  succession  in  time  to  save  from 
ruin,  would  seem  to  have  been  impossible. 

A  LIST  OF  THE  CONSECRATION  AND  SUCCESSION  OF  SCOTS 
BISHOPS,  SINCE  THE  REVOLUTION  1688,  UNDER  WILLIAM 
m.,  AS  FAR  AS  THE  CONSECRATION  OF  BISHOP  SEABURY 
IS  CONCERNED. 

1693.  Feb.  23.  Dr.  George  Hickes  was  consecrated  Suf- 
fragan of  Thetford,  in  the  Bishop  of  Peterborough's  Chapel, 
in  the  Parish  of  Enfield,  by  Dr.  William  Loyd,  Bishop  of 


APPENDIX.  471 

Norwich ;  Dr.  Francis  Turner,  Bishop  of  Ely  ;  and  Dr. 
Thomas  White,  Bishop  of  Peterborough.  .  N.  B.  Dr.  Loyd, 
Dr.  Turner,  and  Dr.  White  were  three  of  the  English  Bish- 
ops who  were  deprived  at  the  Revolution  by  the  Civil  power, 
for  not  swearing  allegiance  to  William  III.  They  were  also 
three  of  the  seven  Bishops  who  had  been  sent  to  the  Tower 
by  James  II.  for  refusing  to  order  an  illegal  Proclamation  to 
be  read  in  their  Dioceses. 

1705.  Jan.  25.  Mr.  John  Sage,  formerly  one  of  the  Min- 
isters of  Glasgow,  and  Mr.  John  Fullarton,  formerly  Minister 
of  Paisley,  were  consecrated,  at  Edinburgh,  by  John  Pater- 
son,  Archbishop  of  Glasgow  ;  Alexander  Rose,  Bishop  of 
Edinburgh,  and  Robert  Douglas,  Bishop  of  Dunblane. 
N.  B.  Archbishop  Paterson,  Bishop  Rose,  and  Bishop  Doug- 
las were  deprived  at  the  Revolution,  by  the  Civil  power,  be- 
cause they  refused  to  swear  allegiance  to  William  III. 

1709.  April  28.  Mr.  John  Falconar,  Minister  at  Carn- 
bie,  and  Mr.  Henry  Chrystie,  Minister  at  Kinross,  were  con- 
secrated at  Dundee,  by  Bishop  Rose  of  Edinburgh,  Bishop 
Douglas  of  Dunblane,  and  Bishop  Sage. 

1711.  Aug.   25.     The  Honourable  Archibald  Campbell 
was  consecrated  at  Dundee,  by  Bishop  Rose  of   Edinburgh, 
Bishop  Douglas  of  Dunblane,  and  Bishop  Falconar. 

1712.  Feb.  24.     Mr.  James  Gadderar,  formerly  Minister 
at  Kilmaurs,  was  consecrated  at  London,  by  Bishop  Hickes, 
Bishop  Falconar,  and  Bishop  Campbell. 

1718.  Oct.  22.  Mr.  Arthur  Millar,  formerly  Minister  at 
Inveresk,  and  Mr.  William  Irvine,  formerly  Minister  at  Kirk- 
michael,  in  Carrick,  were  consecrated  at  Edinburgh,  by  Bishop 
Rose  of  Edinburgh,  Bishop  Fullarton,  and  Bishop  Falconar. 

After  the  Bishop  of  Edinburgh's  death. 

1722.  Oct.  7.  Mr.  Andrew  Cant,  formerly  one  of  the 
Ministers  of  Edinburgh,  and  Mr.  David  Freebairn,  formerly 
Minister  of  Dunning,  were  consecrated  at  Edinburgh,  by 
Bishop  Fullarton,  Bishop  Millar,  and  Bishop  Irvine. 

1727.  June  4.  Dr.  Thomas  Rattray,  of  Craighall,  was 
consecrated  at  Edinburgh,  by  Bishop  Gadderar,  Bishop  Mil- 
lar, and  Bishop  Cant. 


472  APPENDIX. 

1727.  June  18.  Mr.  William  Dunbar,  Minister  at  Cru- 
den,  and  Mr.  Robert  Keith,  Presbyter  in  Edinburgh,  were 
consecrated  at  Edinburgh,  by  Bishop  Gadderar,  Bishop  Mil- 
lar, and  Bishop  Rattray.  N.  B.  They  who  were  deprived 
of  their  parishes  at  the  Revolution  are  in  this  list  called  Min- 
isters ;  but  they  who  had  not  been  Parish-ministers  under  the 
Civil  establishment  are  called  Presbyters. 

1735.  June  24.  Mr.  Robert  White,  Presbyter  at  Cupar, 
was  consecrated  at  Carsebank,  near  Forfar,  by  Bishop  Rat- 
tray,  Bishop  Dunbar,  and  Bishop  Keith. 

1741.  Sept.    10.     Mr.  William    Falconar,    Presbyter   at 
Forres,  was  consecrated  at  Alloa,  in  Clackmannanshire,  by 
Bishop  Rattray,  Bishop  Keith,  and  Bishop  White. 

1742.  Oct.  4.    Mr.  James  Rait,  Presbyter  at  Dundee,  was 
consecrated  at  Edinburgh,  by  Bishop  Rattray,  Bishop  Keith, 
and  Bishop  White. 

1743.  Aug.  19.    Mr.  John  Alexander,  Presbyter  at  Alloa, 
in   Clackmannanshire,  was   consecrated   at   Edinburgh,  by 
Bishop  Keith,  Bishop  White,  Bishop  Falconar,  and  Bishop 
Rait. 

1747.  July  17.  Mr.  Andrew  Gerard,  Presbyter  in  Aber- 
deen, was  consecrated  at  Cupar  in  Fife,  by  Bishop  White, 
Bishop  Falconar,  Bishop  Rait,  and  Bishop  Alexander. 

1759.  Nov.  1.  Mr.  Henry  Edgar  was  consecrated  at 
Cupar  in  Fife,  by  Bishop  White,  Bishop  Falconar,  Bishop 
Rait,  and  Bishop  Alexander,  as  Co-ad jutor  to  Bishop  White, 
then  Primus.  N.  B.  Anciently  no  Bishop  in  Scotland  had 
the  style  of  Archbishop,  but  one  of  them  had  a  precedency, 
under  the  style  of  Primus  Scotice  Episcopus :  And  after  the 
Revolution  they  returned  to  their  old  style,  which  they  still 
retain  ;  one  of  them  being  intitled  Primus,  to  whom  prec- 
edency is  allowed,  and  deference  paid,  in  the  synod  of 
Bishops. 

1762.  June  24.  Mr.  Robert  Forbes  was  consecrated,  at 
Forfar,  by  Bishop  Falconar,  Primus,  Bishop  Alexander,  and 
Bishop  Gerard. 

1768.    Sept.  21.    Mr.  Robert  Kilgour,  Presbyter  at  Peter- 


APPENDIX.  473 

head,  was  consecrated  Bishop  of  Aberdeen,  at  Cupar,  in 
Fife,  by  Bishop  Falconar,  Primus,  Bishop  Rait,  and  Bishop 
Alexander. 

1774.  Aug.  24.  Mr.  Charles  Rose,  Presbyter  at  Down, 
was  consecrated  Bishop  of  Dunblane,  at  Forfar,  by  Bishop 
Falconar,  Primus,  Bishop  Rait,  and  Bishop  Forbes. 

1776.  June  27.  Mr.  Arthur  Petrie,  Presbyter  at  Meikle- 
folla,  was  consecrated  Bishop  Co-adjutor,  at  Dundee,  by 
Bishop  Falconar,  Primus,  Bishop  Rait,  Bishop  Kilgour,  and 
Bishop  Rose ;  and  appointed  Bishop  of  Ross  and  Caithness, 
July  8,  1777.  N.  B.  After  i>he  Revolution,  the  Bishops  in 
Scotland  had  no  particular  Diocese,  but  managed  their  ec- 
clesiastical affairs  in  one  body,  as  a  College ;  but  finding 
inconveniences  in  this  mode,  they  took  particular  Dioceses, 
which,  though  not  exactly  according  to  the  limits  of  the  Dio- 
ceses under  the  former  legal  establishment,  still  retain  their 
old  names. 

1778.  Aug.  13.  Mr.  George  limes,  Presbyter  in  Aber- 
deen, was  consecrated  Bishop  of  Brechin,  at  Alloa,  by  Bishop 
Falconar,  Primus,  Bishop  Rose,  and  Bishop  Petrie. 

1782.  Sept.  25.  Mr.  John  Skinner,  Presbyter  in  Aber- 
deen, was  consecrated  Bishop  Co-adjutor,  at  Luthermuir,  in 
the  Diocese  of  Brechin,  by  Bishop  Kilgour,  Primus,  Bishop 
Rose,  and  Bishop  Petrie. 

N.  JB.  The  foregoing  list  is  taken  from  an  attested  copy, 
in  the  possession  of  Bishop  Seabury. 

1784.  Nov.  14.  Dr.  Samuel  Seabury,  Presbyter,  from  the 
State  of  Connecticut,  in  America,  was  consecrated  Bishop,  at 
Aberdeen,  by  Bishop  Kilgour,  Primus,  Bishop  Petrie,  and 
Bishop  Skinner,  —  as,  by  the  deed  of  consecration,  now  in 
his  possession,  does  fully  appear. 

SAMUEL,  Bp.  Epl  Ch.  Connect. 
NEW-LONDON,  August  26, 1785. 


474  APPENDIX. 


APPENDIX  D. 


THE  COMMUNION-OFFICE,  OR  ORDER  FOR  THE  ADMINISTRA- 
TION OF  THE  HOLY  EUCHARIST  OR  SUPPER  OF  THE  LORD. 
WITH  PRIVATE  DEVOTIONS.  RECOMMENDED  TO  THE  EPIS- 
COPAL CONGREGATIONS  IN  CONNECTICUT,  BY  THE  RIGHT 
REVEREND  BISHOP  SEABURY. 

THE  COMMUNION-OFFICE. 

IT  The  Exhortation. 

DEARLY  beloved  in  the  Lord,  ye  that  mind  to  come  to  the 
holy  Communion  of  the  body  and  blood  of  our  Saviour 
Christ,  must  consider  how  St.  Paul  exhorteth  all  persons 
diligently  to  try  and  examine  themselves,  before  they  pre- 
sume to  eat  of  that  bread,  and  drink  of  that  cup.  For  as  the 
benefit  is  great,  if  with  a  true  penitent  heart  and  lively  faith 
we  receive  that  holy  sacrament,  (for  then  we  spiritually  eat 
the  flesh  of  Christ,  and  drink  his  blood ;  then  we  dwell  in 
Christ,  and  Christ  in  us ;  we  are  one  with  Christ,  and  Christ 
with  us ;)  so  is  the  danger  great,  if  we  receive  the  same  un- 
worthily, not  considering  the  Lord's  body  ;  for  then  we  are 
guilty  of  the  body  and  blood  of  Christ  our  Saviour ;  we  kin- 
dle God's  wrath  against  us,  and  bring  his  judgments  upon 
us.  Judge  therefore  yourselves,  brethren,  that  ye  be  not 
judged  of  the  Lord ;  repent  you  truly  for  your  sins  past ; 
have  a  lively  and  stedfast  faith  in  Christ  our  Saviour ;  amend 
your  lives,  and  be  in  perfect  charity  with  all  men  ;  so  shall 
ye  be  meet  partakers  of  those  holy  mysteries.  And  above 
all  things,  ye  must  give  most  humble  and  hearty  thanks  to 


APPENDIX.  475 

God  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  for  the  re- 
demption of  the  world,  by  the  death  and  passion  of  our  Sav- 
iour Christ,  both  God  and  man,  who  did  humble  himself  even 
to  the  death  upon  the  cross  for  us  miserable  sinners,  who  lay 
in  darkness  and  the  shadow  of  death,  that  he  might  make  us 
the  children  of  God,  and  exalt  us  to  everlasting  life.  And 
to  the  end  that  we  should  always  remember  the  exceeding 
great  love  of  our  Master  and  only  Saviour  Jesus  Christ  thus 
dying  for  us,  and  the  innumerable  benefits  which  by  his  pre- 
cious blood-shedding  he  hath  obtained  to  us,  he  hath  insti- 
tuted and  ordained  holy  mysteries,  as  pledges  of  his  love,  and 
for  a  continual  remembrance  of  his  death,  to  our  great  and 
endless  comfort.  To  him,  therefore,  with  the  Father,  and 
the  Holy  Ghost,  let  us  give  (as  we  are  most  bounden)  con- 
tinual thanks,  submitting  ourselves  wholly  to  his  holy  will 
and  pleasure,  and  studying  to  serve  him  in  true  holiness  and 
righteousness  all  the  days  of  our  life.  Amen. 

IT   Then  the  Priest,  or  Deacon,  shall  say, 

Let  us  present  our  offerings  to  the  Lord  with  reverence  and 

Godly  fear. 

TT  Then  the  Priest  shall  begin  the  offertory,  saying  one  or  more  of 
these  sentences  following,  as  he  thinketh  most  convenient  in  his 
discretion. 

In  process  of  time  it  came  to  pass,  that  Cain  brought  of 
the  fruit  of  the  ground  an  offering  unto  the  Lord.  And 
Abel,  he  also  brought  of  the  firstlings  of  his  flock,  and  of  the 
fat  thereof.  And  the  Lord  had  respect  unto  Abel,  and  to  his 
offering :  but  unto  Cain  and  to  his  offering  he  had  not  re- 
spect. G-en.  iv.  3,  4. 

Speak  Unto  the  children  of  Israel,  that  they  bring  me 
an  offering:  of  every  man  that  giveth  it  willingly  with  his 
heart,  ye  shall  take  my  offering.  Exod.  xxv.  2. 

Ye  shall  not  appear  before  the  Lord  empty.  Every  man 
shall  give  as  he  is  able,  according  to  the  blessing  of  the  Lord 
your  God  which  he  hath  given  you.  Deut.  xvi.  16,  17. 


476  APPENDIX. 

Give  unto  the  Lord  the  glory  due  unto  his  name :  bring 
an  offering,  and  come  into  his  courts.  Psal.  xcvi.  8. 

Lay  not  up  for  yourselves  treasures  upon  earth,  where 
moth  and  rust  doth  corrupt,  and  where  thieves  break  through 
and  steal :  but  lay  up  for  yourselves  treasures  in  heaven, 
where  neither  moth  nor  rust  doth  corrupt,  and  where  thieves 
do  not  break  through  nor  steal.  Matt.  vi.  19,  20. 

Not  every  one  that  saith  unto  me,  Lord,  Lord,  shall  enter 
into  the  kingdom  of  heaven  :  but  he  that  doth  the  will  of 
my  Father  which  is  in  heaven.  Matt.  vii.  21. 

Jesus  sat  over  against  the  treasury,  and  beheld  how  the 
people  cast  money  into  it :  and  many  that  were  rich  cast  in 
much.  And  there  came  a  certain  poor  widow,  and  she  threw 
in  two  mites,  which  make  a  farthing.  And  he  called  unto 
him  his  disciples,  and  saith  unto  them,  Verily  I  say  unto  you, 
that  this  poor  widow  hath  cast  more  in,  than  all  they  which 
have  cast  into  the  treasury.  For  all  they  did  cast  in  of  their 
abundance :  but  she  of  her  want  did  cast  in  all  that  she  had, 
even  all  her  living.  Mark  xii.  41,  42,  43,  44. 

Who  goeth  a  warfare  at  any  time  of  his  own  charges  ?  who 
planteth  a  vineyard,  and  eateth  not  of  the  fruit  thereof  ?  or 
who  f  eedeth  a  flock,  and  eateth  not  of  the  milk  of  the  flock  ? 
1  Cor.  ix.  7. 

If  we  have  sown  unto  you  spiritual  things,  is  it  a  great 
matter  if  we  should  reap  your  carnal  things  ?  1  Cor.  ix.  11. 

Do  ye  not  know,  that  they  which  minister  about  holy 
things,  live  of  the  sacrifice  ?  and  they  which  wait  at  the  al- 
tar, are  partakers  with  the  altar  ?  Even  so  hath  the  Lord 
ordained,  that  they  who  preach  the  gospel,  should  live  of  the 
gospel.  1  Cor.  ix.  13,  14. 

He  that  soweth  sparingly,  shall  reap  also  sparingly :  and 
he  who  soweth  bountifully,  shall  reap  also  bountifully.  Every 
man  according  as  he  purposeth  in  his  heart,  so  let  him  give ; 
not  grudgingly,  or  of  necessity :  for  God  loveth  a  chearf ul 
giver.  2  Cor.  ix.  6,  7. 

Let  him  that  is  taught  in  the  word,  communicate  unto  him 
that  teacheth,  in  all  good  things.  Be  not  deceived :  God  is 


APPENDIX.  477 

not  mocked:  for  whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that  shall  he 
also  reap.  Crdl.  vi.  6,  7. 

Charge  them  that  are  rich  in  this  world,  that  they  be  not 
high-minded,  nor  trust  in  uncertain  riches,  but  in  the  living 
God,  who  giveth  us  richly  all  things  to  enjoy:  That  they 
do  good,  that  they  be  rich  in  good  works,  ready  fco  distribute, 
willing  to  communicate ;  laying  up  in  store  for  themselves  a 
good  foundation  against  the  time  to  come,  that  they  may  lay 
hold  on  eternal  life.  1  Tim.  vi.  17,  18,  19. 

God  is  not  unrighteous,  to  forget  your  work  and  labour  of 
love,  which  ye  have  shewed  toward  his  name,  in  that  ye  have 
ministered  to  the  saints,  and  do  minister.  Ifeb.  vi.  10. 

To  do  good,  and  to  communicate,  forget  not;  for  with 
such  sacrifices  God  is  well  pleased.  Heb.  xiii.  16. 

1T  While  the  Priest  distinctly  pronounceth  some  or  all  of  these  sen- 
tences for  the  offertory,  the  Deacon,  or  (if  no  such  be  present} 
some  other  Jit  person,  shall  receive  the  devotions  of  the  people,  in 
a  basin  provided  for  that  purpose.  And  when  all  have  offered, 
he  shall  reverently  bring,  and  deliver  it  to  the  Priest  ;  who  shall 
humbly  present  it  before  the  Lord,  and  set  it  upon  the  holy  table, 
saying, 

Blessed  be  thou,  O  Lord  God,  for  ever  and  ever.  Thine, 
O  Lord,  is  the  greatness,  and  the  glory,  and  the  victory,  and 
the  majesty  ;  for  all  that  is  in  the  heaven  and  in  the  earth  is 
thine :  thine  is  the  kingdom,  O  Lord,  and  thou  art  exalted 
as  head  above  all :  both  riches  and  honour  come  of  thee,  and 
of  thine  own  do  we  give  unto  thee.  Amen. 

IT  And  the  Priest  shall  then  offer  up,  and  place  the  bread  and  wine 
prepared  for  the  sacrament  upon  the  Lord's  table,  putting  a  little 
pure  water  into  the  cup  :  and  shall  say, 

The  Lord  be  with  you. 

Answer.     And  with  thy  spirit. 

Priest.     Lift  up  your  hearts. 

Answer.     We  lift  them  up  unto  the  Lord. 

Priest.     Let  us  give  thanks  unto  our  Lord  God. 


478  APPENDIX. 

Answer.     It  is  meet  and  right  so  to  do. 
Priest.     It  is  very  meet,  right,  and  our  bounden  duty, 
*   These  words         tnat  we  should  at  all  times,  and  in  all  places, 
x£       give  thanks  unto  thee  O  Lord,  *[holy  Fa- 
Almighty,  everlasting  God. 


IF  Here  shall  follow  the  proper  preface,  according  to  the  time,  if 
there  be  any  especially  appointed  ;  or  else  immediately  shall 
follow, 

Therefore  with  angels  and  archangels,  &c. 

IT  Proper  Prefaces. 

IT    Upon  Christmas-day,  and  seven  days  after. 
Because  thou  didst  give  Jesus  Christ  thine  only  Son,  to  be 
*  During  the        born  *  [as  on  ^s  ^aj]  ^or  us»  who,  by  the 
*Ss?S,l£yr,M     operation  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  was  made  very 
at  this  time.  '        man^  of  tne  substance  of  the  blessed  Virgin 
Mary  his  mother,  and  that  without  spot  of  sin,  to  make  us 
clean  from  all  sin.     Therefore  with  angels,  &c. 

IT    Upon  Easter-day,  and  seven  days  after. 

But  chiefly  are  we  bound  to  praise  thee,  for  the  glorious 
resurrection  of  thy  Son  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord  :  For  he  is 
the  very  Paschal  Lamb,  which  was  offered  for  us,  and  hath 
taken  away  the  sin  of  the  world  ;  who  by  his  death  hath  de- 
stroyed death,  and  by  his  rising  to  life  again,  hath  restored 
to  us  everlasting  life.  Therefore  with  angels,  &c. 

If   Upon  Ascension-day,  and  seven  days  after. 

Through  thy  most  dearly  beloved  Son,  Jesus  Christ  our 
Lord  ;  who,  after  his  most  glorious  resurrection,  manifestly 
appeared  to  all  his  apostles,  and  in  their  sight  ascended  up 
into  heaven,  to  prepare  a  place  for  us;  that  where  he  is, 
thither  might  we  also  ascend,  and  reign  with  him  in  glory. 
Therefore  with  angels  and  archangels,  &c. 


APPENDIX.  479 

IF    Upon  Whitsunday,  and  six  days  offer. 

Through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord  ;  according  to  whose  most 
true  promise  the  Holy  Ghost  came  down  *  [as  *  During  the  six 
on  this  day]  from  heaven,  with  a  sudden  great  fay^say^Y^^l 
sound,  as  it  had  been  a  mighty  wind,  in  the  time' 
likeness  of  fiery  tongues,  lighting  upon  the  apostles,  to  teach 
them,  and  to  lead  them  to  all  truth,  giving  them  both  the  gift 
of  divers  languages,  and  also  boldness  with  fervent  zeal  con- 
stantly to  preach  the  gospel  unto  all  nations,  whereby  we  are 
brought  out  of  darkness  and  error  into  the  clear  light  and  true 
knowledge  of  thee,  and  of  thy  Son  Jesus  Christ.  Therefore 
with  angels,  &c. 

IF   Upon  the  feast  of  Trinity  only. 

Who  art  one  God,  one  Lord;  not  one  only  person,  but 
three  persons  in  one  substance.  For  that  which  we  believe 
of  the  glory  of  the  Father,  the  same  we  believe  of  the  Son, 
and  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  without  any  difference  or  inequality. 
Therefore  with  angels,  &c. 

IF  After  which  prefaces  shall  follow  immediately  this  doxology. 

Therefore  with  angels  and  archangels,  and  with  all  the 
company  of  heaven,  we  laud  and  magnify  thy  glorious  name, 
evermore  praising  thee,  and  saying,  Holy,  holy,  holy  Lord 
God  of  hosts,  heaven  and  earth  are  full  of  thy  glory.  Glory 
be  to  thee,  O  Lord  most  high.  Amen. 

IF  Then  the  Priest  standing  at  such  a  part  of  the  holy  table  as  he 
may  withthe  most  ease  and  decency  use  both  his  hands,  shall  say 
the  prayer  of  consecration,  as  follow  eth. 

All  glory  be  to  thee,  Almighty  God,  our  heavenly  Father, 
for  that  thou  of  thy  tender  mercy  didst  give  thy  only  Son 
Jesus  Christ  to  suffer  death  upon  the  cross  for  our  redemp- 
tion ;  who  made  there  (by  his  one  oblation  of  himself  once 
offered)  a  full,  perfect,  and  sufficient  sacrifice,  oblation,  and 
satisfaction,  for  the  sins  of  the  whole  world  ;  and  did  institute, 


480  APPENDIX. 

/ 

and  in  his  holy  gospel  command  us  to  continue  a  perpetual 
memory  of   that  his  precious  death  and  sacrifice  until  his 
(a)  Here  the  Priest   coming  again.     For,  in  the  night  that  he  was 
into  %ksehandps°ten     betrayed,  (a)  he  took  bread  ;  and  when  he  had 
And  here  to      given  thanks,  (5)  he  brake  it,  and  gave  to  his 
ay  disciples,  saying,  Take,  eat,  (*)  THIS  IS  MY 
the  ^adup°n  "*     BODY,  which  is  given  for  you  :  DO  this  in  re- 
(d)  Here  he  is  to     membrance  of  me.    Likewise  after  supper  (d) 

take  the  cup  into  his  i_     .1  j         i  i          i       i        • 

hand:  he  took   the  cup  ;    and  when   ne   had  given 


thanks,  he  gave  it  to  them,  saying,  Drink  ye 
^1  of  this,  for  (0  THIS  IS  MY  BLOOD,  of 
the  new  testament,  which  is  shed  for  you,  and 
for  many,  for  the  remission  of  sins  :  DO  this  as  oft  as  ye 
shall  drink  it  in  remembrance  of  me. 

Wherefore,  O  Lord,  and  heavenly  Father,  according  to  the 
institution  of  thy  dearly  beloved  Son  our  Sav- 
iour Jesus  Christ,  we  thy  humble  servants  do 
celebrate  and  make  here  before  thy  divine  majesty,  with 
these  thy  holy  gifts,  WHICH  WE  NOW  OFFER  UNTO  THEE, 
the  memorial  thy  Son  hath  commanded  us  to  make  ;  having 
in  remembrance  his  blessed  passion,  and  precious  death, 
his  mighty  resurrection,  and  glorious  ascension;  rendering 
unto  thee  most  hearty  thanks  for  the  innumerable  benefits 
procured  unto  us  by  the  same.  And  we  most 
humbly  beseech  thee,  O  merciful  Father,  to 
hear  us,  and  of  thy  almighty  goodness  vouchsafe  to  bless 
and  sanctify,  with  thy  word  and  Holy  Spirit,  these  thy  gifts 
and  creatures  of  bread  and  wine,  that  they  may  become  the 
body  and  blood  of  thy  most  dearly  beloved  Son.  And  we 
earnestly  desire  thy  fatherly  goodness,  inerci&lly  to  accept 
this  our  sacrifice  of  praise  and  thanksgiving,  most  humbly 
beseeching  thee  to  grant,  that  by  the  merits  and  death  of 
thy  Son  Jesus  Christ,  and  through  faith  in  his  blood,  we 
(and  all  thy  whole  church)  may  obtain  remission  of  our  sins, 
and  all  other  benefits  of  his  passion.  And  here  we  offer  and 
present  unto  thee,  O  Lord,  ourselves,  our  souls  and  bodies, 
to  be  a  reasonable,  holy  and  lively  sacrifice  unto  thee,  hum- 


APPENDIX.  481 

bly  beseeching  thee,  that  we  and  all  others  who  shall  be  par- 
takers of  this  holy  Communion,  may  worthily  receive  the 
most  precious  body  and  blood  of  thy  Son  Jesus  Christ,  be 
filled  with  thy  grace  and  heavenly  benediction,  and  made 
one  body  with  him,  that  he  may  dwell  in  them  and  they  in 
him.  And  although  we  are  unworthy,  through  our  mani- 
fold sins,  to  offer  unto  thee  any  sacrifice  ;  yet  we  beseech 
thee  to  accept  this  our  bounden  duty  and  service,  not  weigh- 
ing our  merits,  but  pardoning  our  offences,  through  Jesus 
Christ  our  Lord:  by  whom,  and  with  whom,  in  the  unity  of 
the  Holy  Ghost,  all  honour  and  glory  be  unto  thee,  O  Father 
Almighty,  world  without  end.  Amen. 

TT  Let  us  pray  for  the  whole  state  of  Christ's  Church. 

Almighty  and  everliving  God,  who  by  thy  holy  Apostle 
hast  taught  us  to  make  prayers  and  supplications,  and  to 
give  thanks  for  all  men  ;  We  humbly  beseech  thee  most 
mercifully  to  accept  our  alms  and  oblations,  and  to  receive 
these  our  prayers,  which  we  offer  unto  thy  divine  majesty; 
beseeching  thee  to  inspire  continually  the  universal  church 
with  the  spirit  of  truth,  unity  and  concord;  and  grant  that 
all  they  who  do  confess  thy  holy  name,  may  agree  in  the 
truth  of  thy  holy  word  and  live  in  unity  and  godly  love. 
We  beseech  thee  also  to  save  and  defend  all  Christian 
Kings,  Princes,  and  Governors ;  and  grant  that  they,  and 
all  who  are  in  authority,  may  truly  and  impartially  minister 
justice  to  the  punishment  of  wickedness  and  vice,  and  to  the 
maintenance  of  thy  true  religion  and  virtue.  Give  grace,  O 
heavenly  Father,  to  all  Bishops,  Priests,  and  Deacons,  that 
they  may  both  by  their  life  and  doctrine  set  forth  thy  true 
and  lively  word,  and  rightly  and  duly  administer  thy  holy 
sacraments  :  and  to  all  thy  people  give  thy  heavenly  grace, 
that  with  meek  heart,  and  due  reverence,  they  may  hear 
and  receive  thy  holy  word,  truly  serving  thee  in  holiness 
and  righteousness  all  the  days  of  their  life.  And  we  com- 
mend especially  to  thy  merciful  goodness  the  congregation 
here  assembled  in  thy  name,  to  celebrate  the  commemora- 

31 


482  APPENDIX. 

tion  of  the  most  precious  death  and  sacrifice  of  thy  Son  and 
our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  And  we  most  humbly  beseech 
thee  of  thy  goodness,  O  Lord,  to  comfort  and  succour  all 
those  who  in  this  transitory  life  are  in  trouble,  sorrow,  need, 
sickness,  or  any  other  adversity.  And  we  also  bless  thy 
holy  name  for  all  thy  servants,  who,  having  finished  their 
course  in  faith,  do  now  rest  from  their  labours:  yielding 
unto  thee  most  high  praise  and  hearty  thanks,  for  the  won- 
derful goodness  and  virtue  declared  in  all  thy  saints,  who 
have  been  the  choice  vessels  of  thy  grace,  and  the  lights  of 
the  world  in  their  several  generations:  most  humbly  be- 
seeching thee  to  give  us  grace  to  follow  the  example  of  their 
stedfastness  in  thy  faith,  and  obedience  to  thy  holy  com- 
mandments, that  at  the  day  of  the  general  resurrection,  we, 
and  all  they  who  are  of  the  mystical  body  of  thy  Son,  may 
be  set  on  his  right  hand,  and  hear  that  his  most  joyful 
voice,  Come,  ye  blessed  of  my  father,  inherit  the  kingdom 
prepared  for  you  from  the  foundation  of  the  world.  Grant 
this,  O  Father,  for  Jesus  Christ's  sake,  our  only  Mediator 
an  d  Advocate.  Am  en. 
As  our  Saviour  Christ  hath  commanded  and  taught  us,  we 

are  bold  to  say, 

Our  Father  who  art  in  heaven,  Hallowed  be  thy  name. 
Thy  kingdom  come.  Thy  will  be  done  in  earth  as  it  is  in 
heaven.  Give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread.  And  forgive  us 
our  trespasses,  as  we  forgive  them  that  trespass  against  us. 
And  lead  us  not  into  temptation  ;  but  deliver  us  from  evil. 
For  thine  is  the  kingdom,  and  the  power  and  the  glory,  for- 
ever and  ever.  Amen. 

IT  Then  shall  the  Priest  say  to  them  that  come  to  receive  the  holy  com- 
munion, this  invitation. 

Ye  that  do  truly  and  earnestly  repent  you  of  your  sins, 
and  are  in  love  and  charity  with  your  neighbours,  and  in- 
tend to  lead  a  new  life,  following  the  commandments  of 
God,  and  walking  from  henceforth  in  his  holy  ways  :  Draw 
near  with  faith  and  take  this  holy  sacrament  to  your  com- 
fort ;  and  make  your  humble  confession  to  Almighty  God. 


APPENDIX.  483 

1T  Then  shall  this  general  confession  be  made,  by  the  people,  along 
with  the  Priest ;  all  humbly  kneeling  upon  their  knees. 

Almighty  God,  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  maker 
of  all  things,  judge  of  all  men;  We  acknowledge  and  be- 
wail our  manifold  sins  and  wickedness,  which  we  from  time 
to  time  most  grievously  have  committed,  by  thought,  word, 
and  deed,  against  thy  divine  Majesty  ;  provoking  most  justly 
thy  wrath  and  indignation  against  us.  We  do  earnestly 
repent,  and  are  heartily  sorry  for  these  our  misdoings  ;  the 
remembrance  of  them  is  grievous  unto  us  ;  the  burden  of 
them  is  intolerable.  Have  mercy  upon  us,  have  mercy 
upon  us,  most  merciful  Father  ;  for  thy  Son  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ's  sake,  forgive  us  all  that  is  past ;  and  grant,  that  we 
may  ever  hereafter  serve  and  please  thee,  in  newness  of  life, 
to  the  honour  and  glory  of  thy  name,  through  Jesus  Christ 
our  Lord.  Amen. 

If  Then  shall  the  Priest,  or  the  Bishop,  (being  present,)  stand  up, 
and  turning  himself  to  the  people,  pronounce  the  absolution  as 
followeth. 

Almighty  God  our  heavenly  Father,  who,  of  his  great 
mercy,  hath  promised  forgiveness  of  sins  to  all  them  that 
with  hearty  repentance  and  true  faith  turn  unto  him ;  Have 
mercy  upon  you;  pardon  and  deliver  you  from  all  your  sins; 
confirm  and  strengthen  you  in  all  goodness  ;  and  bring  you 
to  everlasting  life,  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.  Amen. 

1F  Then  shall  the  Priest  say, 
Hear  what  comfortable  words  our  Saviour  Christ  saith  unto 

all  that  truly  turn  to  him  : 

Come  unto  me,  all  ye  that  labour,  and  are  heavy  laden, 
and  I  will  refresh  you.  Matt.  ix.  28. 

Private  ejaculation. 
Refresh,  0  Lord,  thy  servant  wearied  with  the  burden  of  sin. 

God  so  loved  the  world,  that  he  gave  his  only  begotten 
Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  in  him  should  not  perish,  but 
have  everlasting  life.  John  iii.  16. 


484  APPENDIX. 

Private  ejaculation. 

Lord,  I  believe  in  thy  Son  Jesus  Christ,  and  let  this  faith  purify  me  from 
all  iniquity. 

Hear  also  what  St.  Paul  saith. 

This  is  a  faithful  saying,  and  worthy  of  all  acceptation, 
that  Christ  Jesus  came  into  the  world  to  save  sinners.  1 
Tim.  i.  15. 

Private  ejaculation. 

/  embrace  with  all  thankfulness  that  salvation  that  Jesus  has  brought  into 
the  world. 

Hear  also  what  St.  John  saith. 

If  any  man  sin,  we  have  an  advocate  with  the  Father, 
Jesus  Christ  the  righteous:  and  he  is  the  propitiation  for 
our  sins.  1  John  ii.  1,  2. 

Private  ejaculation. 

Intercede  for  me,  0  blessed  Jesu!  that  my  sins  may  be  pardoned,  through 
the  merits  of  thy  death. 

IT  Then  shall  the  Priest,  turning  him  to  the  altar,  kneel  down,  and 
say,  in  the  name  of  all  them  that  shall  communicate,  this  collect 
of  humble  access  to  the  holy  communion,  as  followeth. 

We  do  not  presume  to  come  to  this  thy  holy  table,  O 
merciful  Lord,  trusting  in  our  own  righteousness,  but  in  thy 
manifold  and  great  mercies.  We  are  not  worthy  so  much 
as  to  gather  up  the  crumbs  under  thy  table :  But  thou  art 
the  same  Lord,  whose  property  is  always  to  have  mercy. 
Grant  us  therefore,  gracious  Lord,  so  to  eat  the  flesh  of  thy 
dear  Son  Jesus  Christ,  and  to  drink  his  blood,  that  our  sin- 
ful bodies  may  be  made  clean  by  his  most  sacred  body,  and 
our  souls  washed  through  his  most  precious  blood,  and  that 
we  may  evermore  dwell  in  him,  and  he  in  us.  Amen. 

If  Then  shall  the  Bishop,  if  he  be  present,  or  else  the  Priest  that  cele- 
brateth,  first  receive  the  communion  in  both  kinds  himself,  and 
next  deliver  it  to  other  Bishops,  Presbyters,  and  Deacons,  (if 
there  be  any  present,)  and  after  to  the  people  in  due  order,  all 
humbly  kneeling.  And  when  he  receiveth  himself,  or  delivereth 
the  sacrament  of  the  body  of  Christ  to  others,  he  shall  say, 


APPENDIX.  485 

The  body  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  which  was  given  for 
thee,  preserve  thy  soul  and  body  unto  everlasting  life. 

1[  Here  the  person  receiving  shall  say,  Amen. 

U"  And  when  the  Priest  receiveth  the  cup  himself,  or  deliver eth  it  to 
others,  he  shall  say, 

The  blood  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  which  was  shed  for 
thee,  preserve  thy  soul  and  body  unto  everlasting  life. 

IT  Here  the  person  receiving  shall  say,  Amen. 

IT  If  the  consecrated  bread  or  wine  be  all  spent  before  all  have  com- 
municated, the  Priest  is  to  consecrate  more,  according  to  the 
form  before  prescribed,  beginning  at  the  words,  All  glory  be  to 
thee,  etc.,  and  ending  with  the  words,  that  they  may  become 
the  body  and  blood  of  thy  most  dearly  beloved  Son. 

IT  When  all  have  communicated,  he  that  celebrates  shall  go  to  the 
Lord's  table,  and  cover  with  a  fair  linen  cloth  that  which  re- 
maineth  of  the  consecrated  elements,  and  then  say, 

Having  now  received  the  precious  body  and  blood  of  Christ, 
let  us  give  thanks  to  our  Lord  God,  who  hath  graciously 
vouchsafed  to  admit  us  to  the  participation  of  his  holy 
mysteries ;  and  let  us  beg  of  him  grace  to  perform  our 
vows,  and  to  persevere  in  our  good  resolutions ;  that  being 
made  holy,  we  may  obtain  everlasting  life,  through  the 
merits  of  the  all-sufficient  sacrifice  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour 
Jesus  Christ. 

IT  Then  the  Priest  shall  say  this  collect  of  thanksgiving,  asfottoweth. 

Almighty  and  everliving  God,  we  most  heartily  thank 
thee,  for  that  thou  dost  vouchsafe  to  feed  us,  who  have  duly 
received  these  holy  mysteries,  with  the  spiritual  food  of  the 
most  precious  body  and  blood  of  thy  Son  our  Saviour  Jesus 
Christ ;  and  doth  assure  us  thereby  of  thy  favour  and  good- 
ness towards  us,  and  that  we  are  very  members  incorporate 
in  the  mystical  body  of  thy  Son,  which  is  the  blessed  com- 
pany of  all  faithful  people,  and  are  also  heirs  through  hope 


486  APPENDIX. 

of  thy  everlasting  kingdom,  by  the  merits  of  his  most  pre- 
cious death  and  passion.  We  now  most  humbly  beseech 
thee,  O  heavenly  Father,  so  to  assist  us  with  thy  grace  and 
Holy  Spirit,  that  we  may  continue  in  that  holy  communion 
and  fellowship,  and  do  all  such  good  works  as  thou  hast 
commanded  us  to  walk  in,  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord; 
to  whom,  with  Thee  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  be  all  honour  and 
glory,  world  without  end.  Amen. 

IT    Then  shall  be  said  or  sung,  Gloria  in  Excelsis,  asfolloweth. 

Glory  be  to  God  on  high,  and  in  earth  peace,  good  will 
towards  men.  We  praise  thee,  we  bless  thee,  we  worship 
thee,  we  glorify  thee,  we  give  thanks  to  thee,  for  thy  great 
glory,  (3  Lord  God,  heavenly  King,  God  the  Father  Al- 
mighty ;  and  to  Thee,  O  God,  the  only  begotten  Son  Jesu 
Christ ;  and  to  Thee,  O  God,  the  Holy  Ghost. 

O  Lord,  the  only  begotten  Son  Jesu  Christ;  O  Lord  God, 
Lamb  of  God,  Son  of  the  Father,  who  takest  away  the  sins 
of  the  world,  have  mercy  upon  us.  Thou  that  takest  away 
the  sins  of  the  world,  receive  our  prajTer.  Thou  that  sittest 
at  the  right  hand  of  God  the  Father,  have  mercy  upon  us. 

For  thou  only  art  holy,  thou  only  art  the  Lord,  thou  only, 
O  Christ,  with  the  Holy  Ghost,  art  most  high  in  the  glory 
of  God  the  Father.  Amen. 

IT  Then  the  Priest,  or  Bishop,  if  he  he  present,  shall  let  them  depart, 
with  this  blessing. 

The  peace  of  God,  which  passeth  all  understanding,  keep 
your  hearts  and  minds  in  the  knowledge  and  love  of  God, 
and  of  his  Son  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord:  and  the  blessing  of 
God  Almighty,  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Ghost  be 
amongst  you,  and  remain  with  you  always.  Amen. 

PRIVATE  DEVOTIONS  FOR  THE  ALTAR. 

Blessed  Jesus !  Saviour  of  the  world !  who  hast  called  me  to  the  par- 
ticipation of  these  thy  holy  mysteries,  accept  my  humble  approach  to 
thy  sacred  table,  increase  my  faith,  settle  my  devotion,  fix  my  contem- 
plation on  thy  powerful  mercy;  and  while  with  my  mouth  I  receive  the 


APPENDIX.  487 

sacred  symbols  of  thy  body  and  blood,  may  they  be  the  means  of 
heavenly  nourishment  to  prepare  my  body  and  soul  for  that  everlasting 
life  which  thou  hast  purchased  by  thy  merits,  and  promised  to  bestow 
on  all  who  believe  in  and  depend  on  thee.  Amen. 

Prayer  to  God. 

O  Gracious  and  merciful  God,  Thou  supreme  Being,  Father,  Word 
and  Holy  Ghost,  look  down  from  heaven,  the  throne  of  thy  essential 
glory,  upon  me  thy  unworthy  creature,  with  the  eyes  of  thy  covenanted 
mercy  and  compassion:  O  Lord  my  God,  I  disclaim  all  merit,  I  re- 
nounce all  righteousness  of  my  own,  either  inherent  in  my  nature,  or  ac- 
quired by  my  own  industry:  And  I  fly  for  refuge,  for  pardon  and  sancti- 
fication,  to  the  righteousness  of  thy  Christ:  For  his  sake,  for  the  sake  of 
the  blessed  Jesus,  the  Son  of  thy  covenanted  love,  whom  Thou  hast  set 
forth  to  be  a  propitiation  for  fallen  man,  and  in  whom  alone  Thou  art 
well  pleased,  have  mercy  upon  me,  receive  my  prayers,  pardon  my  in- 
firmities, strengthen  my  weak  resolutions,  guide  my  steps  to  thy  holy 
altar,  and  there  feed  me  with  the  meat  which  perisheth  not,  but  endur- 
eth  to  everlasting  life.  Amen. 

After  Receiving. 

Blessed  Jesus  !  Thou  hast  now  blest  me  with  the  food  of  thy  own 
merciful  institution,  and,  in  humble  faith  of  thy  gracious  promise,  I  have 
bowed  myself  at  thy  table,  to  receive  the  precious  pledges  of  thy  dying 
love  ;  O  may  thy  presence  go  with  me  from  this  happy  participation  of 
thy  goodness,  that  when  I  return  to  the  necessary  labours  and  employ- 
ments of  this  miserable  world,  I  may  be  enabled  by  thy  grace  to  obey 
thy  commandments,  and  conducted  by  thy  watchful  care  through  all 
trials,  till,  according  to  thy  divine  wisdom,  I  have  finished  my  course 
here  with  joy,  that  so  I  may  depart  out  of  this  world  in  peace,  and  in  a 
stedfast  dependence  on  thy  merits,  O  blessed  Jesus,  in  whose  prevailing 
words  I  shut  up  all  my  imperfect  wishes,  saying, 
Our  Father,  &c.  Amen. 


488  APPENDIX. 


APPENDIX  E. 


A  BURIAL  OFFICE  FOR  INFANTS  WHO  DEPART  THIS  LIFE 
BEFORE  THEY  HAVE  POLLUTED  THEIR  BAPTISM  BY  ACT- 
UAL SIN.  BY  BISHOP  SEABURY. 

The  Priest  going  before  the  corpse  into  the  churchyard  ;  either 
into  the  church  or  to  the  grave^  shall  say^ 

All  flesh  is  grass,  and  all  its  glory  like  the  flower  of  the 
field.  The  grass  withereth,  the  flower  fadeth  when  the  wind 
of  Jehovah  bloweth  upon  it.  Isaiah  xl.  6,  7. 

Suffer  little  children  to  come  unto  me.     Matt.  xix.  14. 

Whosoever  cometh  to  me,  said  the  blessed  Jesus,  I  will  in 
nowise  cast  out.  John  vi.  37. 

I  am  the  resurrection  and  the  life.     John  xi.  25. 

Precious  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord  is  the  death  of  his  saints. 
Psa.  cxvi.  15. 

Blessed  therefore  are  the  dead  who  die  in  the  Lord.  Rev. 
xiv.  13. 

They  are  taken  away  from  the  evil  to  come.  Isaiah 
Ivii.  1. 

Coming  to  the  grave  shall  be  said  or  sung> 

Glory  be  to  the  Father,  &c. 
As  it  was  in  the  beginning,  &c. 

"While  the  corpse  is  made  ready  for  interment  shall  be  said  by 
the  Priest,  or  sung^ 

Man  that  is  born  of  a  woman  hath  but  a  short  time  to 
live,  and  is  full  of  misery.  He  cometh  up  and  is  cut  down 


APPENDIX.  489 

like  a  flower ;  he  fleeth  as  it  were  a  shadow,  and  never  con- 
tinueth  in  one  stay. 

In  the  midst  of  life  we  are  in  death.  Of  whom  may  we 
seek  for  succour,  but  of  thee,  O  Lord,  who  for  our  sins  art 
justly  displeased? 

Yet,  O  Lord  God  most  holy,  O  Lord  most  mighty,  O  holy 
and  most  merciful  Saviour,  deliver  us  not  into  the  bitter 
pains  of  eternal  death. 

Thou  knowest,  Lord,  the  secrets  of  our  hearts.  Shut  not 
thy  merciful  ears  to  our  prayers  ;  but  spare  us,  Lord  most 
holy,  O  God  most  mighty,  O  holy  and  merciful  Saviour, 
thou  most  worthy  Judge  eternal,  suffer  us  not  at  our  last 
hour  for  any  pains  of  death  to  fall  from  thee. 

While  earth  is  cast  on  the  body,  the  Priest  shall  say, 

In  the  name  of  the  most  holy  and  undivided  Trinity, 
Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  in  whose  likeness  man  was 
created,  we  commit  this  body  to  the  ground ;  earth  to  earth ; 
ashes  to  ashes ;  dust  to  dust ;  in  sure  and  certain  hope  of  its 
resurrection  to  eternal  life  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
who  is  the  resurrection  and  the  life ;  who  at  his  second  com- 
ing shall  change  this  vile  body,  according  to  his  most  gra- 
cious promise,  by  raising  it  from  the  dead,  and  transforming 
it  into  the  likeness  of  his  own  glorified  body,  according  to 
the  mighty  working  whereby  he  is  able  to  subdue  all  things 
to  himself. 

Lord  of  life  and  glory,  Jesus,  eternal  Son  of  God,  have 
mercy  on  us,  and  hear  the  prayer  of  thine  own  appointment. 

Our  Father,  &c. 

O  Almighty  God,  who  through  thine  only  begotten  Son 
Jesus  Christ,  hast  overcome  death  and  opened  unto  us  the 
gate  of  everlasting  life,  mercifully  grant,  that  as  this  deceased 
infant  hath  been  baptized  into  the  death  of  thy  beloved  Son 
Jesus  Christ,  and  thereby  made  his  disciple,  and  the  heir  of 
eternal  glory,  and  now  at  thy  command  hath  gone  out  of  this 
mortal  life  before  he  hath  done  good  or  evil ;  the  garment  of 
his  regeneration  remaining  pure  and  unspotted,  and  his  soul 


490  APPENDIX. 

having  already  found  admission,  through  the  merit  of  the 
Redeemer,  into  thy  paradise,  so  his  body  may  have  a  happy 
passage  through  the  grave  and  gate  of  death  to  a  joyful  res- 
urrection at  th6  last  day,  and  may  then  be  made  partaker  of 
everlasting  glory,  through  Him  who  died,  and  was  buried, 
and  rose  again  for  us,  Jesus  Christ  thy  Son,  our  Lord  and 
Saviour.  AMEN. 

Glory  be  to  the  Father,  &c. 

As  it  was  in  the  beginning,  &c. 

Almighty  God  with  whom  do  live  the  spirits  of  those  who 
depart  hence  in  the  Lord,  and  with  whom  the  souls  of  the 
faithful,  after  they  are  delivered  from  the  burden  of  the 
flesh,  are  in  joy  and  felicity !  we  give  thee  hearty  thanks  for 
all  the  gracious  dispensations  of  thy  wise  Providence !  And 
we  beseech  thee,  by  this  and  every  other  instance  of  daily 
mortality,  to  teach  us  who  are  yet  alive  to  consider  how  frail 
and  uncertain  our  condition  is ;  that  seriously  numbering  our 
days,  we  may  earnestly  apply  ourselves  to  attain  thy  heav- 
enly promises,  and  at  the  tremendous  appearing  of  the  great 
God,  even  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  may  with  all  those  who 
have  departed  hence  in  Him,  have  our  perfect  consummation 
and  bliss,  both  in  body  and  soul,  in  thy  eternal  and  everlast- 
ing glory,  through  the  same  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.  AMEN. 

Our  deceased  infants  who  have  been  baptized  into  the 
death  of  Jesus  Christ,  shall  all  be  delivered  from  the  hand  of 
the  enemy,  the  great  destroyer  death,  and  shall  return  to 
their  own  border,1  thy  heavenly  kingdom,  O  God ;  for  this  is 
the  will  of  the  Father,  that  of  all  that  he  hath  given  to  the 
Son,  he  shall  lose  nothing,  but  should  raise  it  up  again  at 
the  last  day. 

The  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  love  of  God, 
and  the  fellowship  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  be  with  us  all  ever 
more.  AMEN. 

1  Jeremiah  xxxi.  16, 17. 


INDEX. 


A. 


Aberdeen,  See  of,  126 ;  Episcopal  Sy- 
nod at,  339. 

Adarns,  John,  69,  74,  134,  247. 

"Address  to  Ministers  and  Congrega- 
tions of  the  Presbyterian  and  Inde- 
pendent Persuasions,"  397. 

Address  to  the  English  Bishops,  and 
Application  for  the  Succession,  245 ; 
Second  Address,  257,  258. 

"  A  Dignified  Clergyman  of  the 
Church  of  England,"  185,  206. 

Allan,  Rev.  Alexander,  338. 

Allan,  Rev.  John,  140,  142,  338. 

American  Bishops,  19,  84,  94,  464. 

American  Church,  1,  87,  88,  100,  126, 
128,  196,  197,  211,  258,  382,  384, 
422. 

American  Episcopacy,  163. 

American  Episcopate,  19,  73,  74,  80, 
84,  91,  105,  198. 

American  Independence,  54,  133. 

Andre,  Major,  63,  64. 

Andrews,  Rev.  Dr.  John,  450,  451. 

Andrews,  Rev.  Samuel,  76,  124,  208. 

"  An  Examination  into  the  Conduct 
of  the  Delegates  at  their  Grand 
Convention,"  29. 

Answer  of  the  English  Bishops  to  the 
First  Address  of  the  Convention  at 
Philadelphia,  252;  answer  to  the 
Second  Address,  287-289. 

Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  85,  86. 

Archbishop  of  York,  80/85. 

Arnold,  Benedict,  63,  64,  74. 

Asburv,  Francis,  400. 

Athanasian  Creed,  324,  353,  376,  431, 
444. 

Auchmuty,  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel,  55,  464. 

Avery,  Rev.  Ephraim,  50,  51,  464. 


B. 

Babcock,  Rev.  Luke,  51. 
Badger,  Rev.  Moses,  402. 


Baldwin,  Rev.  Ashbel,  213,  238,  332 ; 

letters  of,  315-318. 
Bancroft,  George,  70. 
Barbadoes,  College  at,  5. 
Barton,  Rev.  Thomas,  57. 
Barwell,  Mr.,  337. 
Bass,  Rev.  Edward,  358,  359,  364,  365, 

403,  404,  456. 
Beach,  Rev.  Abraham,  194,  195,  310, 

357,  369. 

Beach,  Rev.  John,  72,  76. 
Belden,  Rev.  David,  316. 
Berkeley,  Dean,  206. 
Berkeley,  Rev.  Dr.  George,   126-129, 

138,  166,  206. 
Bishops  of     Scotland,    letter    of,  to 

Clergy  in  Connecticut,  153-156. 
Bissett,*Rev.  John,  329,  357. 
Black,  Joseph,  435. 
Blackwell,  Rev.  Dr.,  378. 
Blakeslee,  Rev.  E.,  317,  428. 
Blakeslee,  Rev.  S.,  317,  427,  428,452. 
Bloomer,  Rev.  Joshua,  194,  249. 
Bolles,  Rev.  Dr.  James,  A.  380. 
Book  of  Common  Prayer,  12,  73,  237, 

243,    246,    255-258,    264,    297,    301, 

302,  320,  373-376,  398 ;  changes  in 

376-379,  388-390,  412. 
Bostvvick,  Rev.  Gideon,  76,  439. 
Boucher,    Rev.    Jonathan,    135,    159, 

178,    186,   187,   201,   204,  285,  301, 

405,  427,  441,  459;   letter  of,  202, 

203. 
Bowden,  Rev.  John,  213-215,  259,  322, 

339,   367,  408,   411,  417,  434,    439, 

455,  465 ;  letter  of,  260-262. 
British  Provinces,  208. 
Bronson,  Rev.  Tillotson,  132,  284,315, 

344. 

Brown,  George,  448. 
Brown,  Rev.  Isaac,  60. 
Brown,  Rev.  James,  340. 
Burhans,  Rev.  Daniel,  428,  439. 
Butler,   Rev.    David,  417,    428,    440, 

453. 
Byles,  Rev.  Mather,  330. 


492 


INDEX. 


C. 


Carleton,  Sir  Guy,  66,  68,  71,  72,  84, 
95,  104,  470. 

Cartwright,  of  Shrewsbury,  134. 

Catlin,  llev.  Russell,  417,  428. 

Chamberlain,  George,  286. 

Chandler,  Rev.  Thomas  B.,  30-33,  73, 
85,  95,  100,  135,  160,  176,  186,  188, 
203,  205,  228,  259, 464  ;  publications, 
20;  appointed  Bishop,  111,  121 ;  let- 
ters of ,  177-181. 

Charles  II.,  335,  337. 

Charles,  Edward,  Death  of,  339. 

Charlton,  Rev.  Richard,  464. 

Chauncey,  Dr.  Charles,  73,  339. 

Child,  Caleb,  445. 

Church  in  America,  135,  170. 

Church  in  Connecticut,  76,  120,  122, 
135,  137,  142,  160,  162,  167,  173, 
235,  298,  387,  388,  390,  408,  412, 
436,  458. 

Church  in  Massachusetts,  432. 

Church  in  Rhode  Island,  417,  432. 

"  Churchman's  Magazine,"  95. 

Church  of  England,  3,  10,  12,  14,  16, 
19-21, 30,  60,  66-68,  70,  74,  80-84,  90, 
92-95,  100,  106,  121,  127,  136,  160, 
161,  172,  174,  184,  188-191,  193, 
206,  210,  230,  245,  255,  257-259, 
299,  300,  306,  353,  395,  397-400, 
463,  464;  liturgy  of,  4,  45,  190,  191, 
195,  242,  243,  245,  339,  343;  clergy 
of,  35,  54,  56,  60,  68,  76. 

Claggett,  Rev.  Thomas  John,  191, 
371,  456;  chosen  Bishop,  422;  con- 
secrated, 424. 

Clark,  John,  413. 

Clark,  Rev.  Richard  S.,  76,  208. 

Clarke,  Rev.  Abraham  L.,  407,  425, 
447. 

Clinton,  Sir  Henry,  53,  63,  64,  66. 

Coit,  Dr.,  455. 

Coke,  Rev.  Dr.  Thomas,  399,  400. 

College  of  Doctors,  391. 

Collier,  Bishop,  337. 

Collier,  Sir  George,  58. 

Communion  Office,  263,  474-487. 

Concordate,  150-153,  166,  263. 

Congregationalists,  3,  13,  73. 

Congress,  39,  40,  54,  66,  69,  71. 

Connecticut,  Bishop  of,  180,  255,  415, 
445,  452,  459. 

Connecticut,  clergy  of,  80,  82,  86,  89, 
97,  102,  106,  107,  109,  112,  117- 
125,  128,  130-133,  136,  146,  147, 
149,  150,  153,  172,  194-197,  214, 
226-228,  240,  301-303,  318,  322. 

Connecticut,  lay  delegates  introduced 
into  Convention,  414. 


"  Constitution  of  the  Protestant  Epis- 
copal Church  in  the  State  of  Con- 
necticut," 415. 

Continental  Congress,  27,  28,  35,  38, 
42,  56,  62. 

Continental  Fast,  38,  40. 

Convention  in  Middletown,  208. 

Convention  in  Philadelphia,  244,  255, 
357,  368. 

Convention  in  Rhode  Island,  432. 

Convention  in  Stratford,  445. 

Convention  in  Wallingford,  112. 

Convention  in  Wilmington,  Del.,  287. 

Convention  in  Woodbury,  77. 

Convocations,  214,  237,  263,  265,  293- 
295,  305,  332,  387,  389,  406,  408, 
412,  414,  434,442,453. 

Cooke,  Charles,  286. 

Cooke,  Rev.  Samuel,  464. 

Cooper,  Dr.  Myles,  30-33,  136,  138, 
140,  159,  464. 

Cornwallis,  Lord,  65. 

Cowper,  Capt.,  Ill,  119. 

Coxe,  Tench,  378. 

Cutler,  Rector,  2. 

Cutting,  Rev.  Leonard,  18,  19,  464. 


D. 


Danish  Bishops,  121. 
Declaration  of  Independence,  44. 
Denmark,  Church  in,  134. 
Dibblee,  Rev.  Ebenezer,  76,  391,  409, 

425. 

Digby,  Admiral,  96,  470. 
Diocesan     Convention,     Connecticut, 

427,  439. 

Diocese  of  Connecticut,  153. 
Drummond,  Abernethy,  Bishop,  336. 
Duane,  James,  255. 
Duche,  Rev.  Jacob,  62,  169,  170,  250, 

292. 


Edward  VI.,  First  Prayer  Book  of, 
353,  354,  395. 

Ellison,  Mr.,  119,  123. 

Elphinstone,  Mr.,  128. 

English  Book  of  Ordination  and  Con- 
secration, 314. 

English  Church,  173,  182,  239,  259. 

English  Consecrate,  295,  298. 

English  Cousecrators,  297. 

Episcopacy,  2-4,  20,  81,  98,  99,  103, 
125,  127,  134,  143,  159,  165,  167,  184, 
185,  205,  209,  216,  242,  335,  338. 

Episcopal  Academy,  349,  408,  437- 
439,  445. 


INDEX. 


493 


Episcopal  Charitable  Society,  320; 
sermon  before,  327-329. 

Episcopal  Church  in  America,  4,  21, 
108,  147,  172,  174,  180,  181,  190, 
192,  193,  195,  196,  199,  204,  207, 
209,  250,  251  ;  in  Scotland,  7,  79, 
126,  127,  129,  142,  149,  174,  183, 
184,  186,  211,  230,  246,  339,  340, 
343,  385,  470. 

Episcopal  Clergy,  6,  7,  14,  19. 

Erastianism,  126. 


F. 


Fanning,  Col.  Edmund,  53. 

Federal  Constitution,  311,  316,  317, 
379,  459. 

Ferguson,  Rev.  Colin,  213,  214,  231, 
357. 

Fogg,  Rev.  Daniel,  76,  78,  195;  let- 
ters of,  103-105. 

Fowle,  Rev.  Robert,  403. 

Fowler,  Jonathan,  36-38. 

Franklin,  Dr.,  69,  242,  243. 

"Free  Thoughts  on  the  Proceedings 
of  the  Congress  at  Philadelphia," 
30. 

"  Free  Thoughts  on  the  Proceedings 
of  the  Continental  Congress,"  28. 


G. 


Gardiner,  Rev.  Walter  C.,  432,  433. 
Gaskin,  Rev.  Dr.  George,  341,  342. 
General  Assembly  of  Connecticut,  2, 

35-37,  46,  124,  416,  453. 
General  Assembly  of  New  York,  27, 

40. 
General  Association  of   Connecticut, 

14. 
General    Convention,   366,   367,  380, 

381,  385,  387,   389,   397,   400,   408, 

411,  412,  415,   417,   421,   424,   425, 

433,  445,  448,  451,  453,  456. 
"  General   History   of    Connecticut," 

75. 

"Gentleman's  Magazine,"  188. 
George  I.,  342. 
George  II.,  342. 
George  III.,  339,  340. 
Giles,  Rev.  Mr.,  463. 
Gleig,  Rev.  George,  183. 
Graves,  Rev.  Matthew,  74. 
Griffith,   Rev.   David,   244,  255,  290- 

292,  309,  311-314,  331,  333,  359. 
Griswold,  Rev.  Alexander  V.,  446, 452. 
Grosvenor,  Mr.,  104. 


H. 


Hamilton,  Alexander,  30,  33. 

Hamilton,  Mr.,  337. 

Hammond,  Dr.,  431. 

Hanover,  House  of,  144. 

Hardy,  Sir  Charles,  8. 

Hart,  Rev.  Seth,  407,  425. 

Harvard  College,  2,  403. 

Hicks,  Colonel,  286. 

Hicks,  Edward,  8. 

Hicks,  Mary,  8. 

Hooker's  Ecclesiastical  Polity,  345. 

Hopkinsou,  Francis,  255,  378. 

Home,   Rev.   Dr.   George,   163,    178, 

285,  342,  431, 
House  of  Bishops,  373. 
House  of  Deputies,  375-377. 
Howe,  General,  46. 
Hubbard,  Rev.  Bela,  36,  76,  112,  113, 

116,  119,  124,   209,    211,   237,   304, 

367,  387,  391,   407,    414,    434,   435, 

438,  440,  442,  445,  454. 
Huntington,  Samuel,  266. 


Ingersoll,  Jonathan,  415. 

Inglis,  Dr.  Charles,  30,  54-56,  62,  66, 

71,  83,  85,  111,  170,  250,464. 
Isaacs,  Ralph,  440. 
Ives,  Rev.  Reuben,  264,  283,  284,  316, 

317,  429,  442. 


J. 


Jarvis,  Rev.  Abraham,  76,  78,  83,  85, 
112,  116,  118,  123,  124,  130,  148, 
172,  207-209,  211,  213-215,  322, 
367,  371,  381,  382,  387,  391,  406, 
428,  442,  458,  464  ;  secretary  to  the 
Convention,  80-82,  86-90,  98-102, 
196,  197,  239-241  ;  elected  Bishop, 
293. 

Jarvis,  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  Farmer,  381, 
466. 

Jay,  John,  29,  69,  248,  255. 

Jenney,  Rev.  Dr.,  4. 

Johnson,  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel,  2,  20,  110, 
464. 

Johnson,  Dr.  William  Samuel,  43,  311, 
312. 

Jolly,  Rev.  Alexander,  336,  338 ; 
prayer  of,  157,  158. 

Jones,  Rev.  Isaac,  319. 

Jones,  Mr.,  178. 


494 


INDEX. 


K. 


Kemp,  James,  Bishop,  158. 

Kilgour,  Robert,  Primus,  138,  140, 
141,  145,  147-149,  153,  156,  183, 
206,  240,  295,  296,  338,  339,  341. 

King's  College,  18,30. 

Kirk  of  Scotland,  464. 

Kneeland,  Rev.  Ebenezer,  76. 


Lauren s,  Henry,  69. 

Learning,  Rev.  Jeremiah,  59,  72,  74, 
78,  79,  83,  85,  109,  112,  114,  116, 
118,  119,  123,  124,  130,  131,  172, 
208,  211,  213,  215,  226,  241,  293, 
343,  364,  367,  369,  387,  406;  let- 
ters of,  305-308,  311-313,  331,  332, 
347,348,370,371. 

Lexington,  Battle  of,  31,  70. 

List  of  the  Consecration  and  Succes- 
sion of  Scots  Bishops,  470-473. 

Liturgy,  7,  243,  388,  431  ;  alterations 
in,  214,  227,  246,  247,  257,  259,  264- 
266,  282,  287,  288,  379,  385-387. 

Liturgy  of  Edward  VI.,  354. 

Liturgy,  New,  296,  297. 

Livingston,  William,  29. 

Lothrop,  Captain,  36,  38. 

Loughton,  Mr.,  337. 

Lowth,  Dr.,  Bishop  of  London,  133, 
183. 


M. 

Macfarlane,  Mr.,  295,  296,  338. 

Madison,  Rev.  James,  consecrated  bish- 
op, 421,  422,  424. 

Magaw,  Rev.  Dr.,  378,  382. 

Manning,  Mr.,  242. 

Mansfield,  Rev.  Richard,  72,  74,  76, 
211,  293,  387,  391,  407,  426,  439. 

Marsh,  Rev.  Truman,  316,  387. 

Marshall,  Rev.  John  Rutgers,  76,  77, 
195,  197,  198,  211. 

McKean,  Rev.  Robert,  464. 

McSparran,  Rev.  Dr.  James,  3,  448. 

Mede,  Joseph,  345. 

Methodism,  21. 

Methodist  Episcopacy,  399. 

Methodists,  189,  230,  399,  400. 

Miles,  Rev.  Manoah  Smith,  446,  454. 

"  Minute  Book  of  the  College  of  Bish- 
ops in  Scotland/'  146. 

Mitre,  first  worn,  318. 

Montague,  Rev.  Mr.,  344,  345. 

Montgomery,  Mr.  Thomas  H.,  469. 


Moore,  Rev.  Benjamin,  83,  85,  111, 
194,  197,  198,  208,  214,  357,  363- 
365,  418,  423,  456;  letter  of,  291, 
292. 

Moore,  Rev.  Mr.,  249. 

Moore,  Sir  Henry,  22,  23. 

Moravian  Bishops,  160,  173. 

Morgan,  George,  437. 

Morice,  Rev.  Dr.  William,  162,  176. 

Morris,  Gouverneur,  32. 

Morris,  Lewis,  32. 

Mumford,  Thomas,  1,  3. 

Munro,  Rev.  Harry,  464. 

Murray,  Rev.  Dr.  Alexander,  165,  248, 
250. 


N. 


Nag's  Head  Ordination,  188. 
Neill,  Rev.  Hugh,  14. 
Nesbitt,  Rev.  Samuel,  332. 
New  London  Church  burnt,  207. 
New  London,  Consecration  of  Church 

at,  314,  315. 

Newton,  Rev.  Christopher,  76. 
Nicene  Creed,  390. 
Nichols,  Rev.  James,  76. 
Nichols,  Philip,  425. 
North,  Lord,  26,  46,  65,  66,  109. 
Nova  Scotia  Episcopate,  177. 


0. 


Odell,  Mr.,  111. 

Office  for  the  Burial  of  Infants,  430, 

488-490. 

Ogden,  Rev.  John  C.,  315,  329,  403. 
Ogilbie,  Rev.  John,  464. 
Old  and  New  Lights,  14,  21. 
Oliver,  Rev.  Thomas  Fitch,  215. 
Osbaldiston,  Dr.  Richard,  Bishop  of 

Carlisle,  8. 
Owen,  Rev.  John,  3. 


P. 


Paca,  Governor  of  Maryland,  190. 

Paine,  Thomas,  56. 

Park,  Sir  James  Allen,  342. 

Parker,  Rev.  Samuel,  78,  103-105, 
195,  197,  198,  208,  214,  215,  227, 
237,  258,  291,  301,  304,  309,  310, 
313,  320,  326,  329,  333,  339,  343, 
345,  347,  352,  358,  362,  364,  365, 
368,  374,  375,  403,  404,  456  ;  letter 
of,  321-325. 

Perry,  Rev.  David,  407. 


INDEX. 


495 


Peters,  Richard,  254. 

Peters,  Rev.  Samuel,  75. 

Petrie,  Arthur,  Bishop,  141,  145, 147- 
149,  153,  156,  240,  295,  296. 

Philadelphia  College,  179. 

Pilrnore,  Rev.  Joseph,  256,  308,  357. 

Pointed  Psalter,  431. 

Portland,  Duke  of,  109. 

Presbyterians,  7,  13,  73,  203,  331,  395. 

Presbyterians,  French,  24. 

Price,  Bishop,  134,  135. 

Prindle,  Rev.  Chauncey,  317. 

Private  Thoughts  on  Religion,  4. 

Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  190, 191, 
200,  366,  369-371,  399,  400,  408, 
414,415. 

Provincial  Assembly,  28,  31,  44,  45. 

Provincial  Congress  in  New  York,  39- 
43,  51. 

Provoost,  Rev.  Samuel,  71,  255,  289, 
291,  296,  299,  301,  303,  306,  308, 
312,  314,  318,  334,  337,  346,  350, 
356,  358,  360,  364-366,  372,  418, 
419,  422,  424,  432,  433,  448,  456; 
chosen  Bishop,  290 ;  embarks  for 
England,  292;  letters  of,  248,  249, 
253,  254. 

Punderson,  Ebenezer,  396. 

Punderson,  Rev.  Ebenezer,  2. 

Purcell,  Rev.  Dr.  Henry,  450. 


Q- 

Quakerism,  9-11. 
Quakers,  10,  16,  24. 
Queen  Anne,  341,  342. 


R. 

Remsen,  Henry,  Jr.,  18. 
Rivington,  James,  29,  46,  248. 
Riviugton,  John,  207. 
Rivington's  Gazette,  28. 
Rodgers,  Dr.,  253. 
Roe,  Rev.  Mr.,  254. 
Rose,  Bishop,  147,  340. 
Routh,  Dr.,  134. 


S. 


Saltonstall,  Roswell,  460. 

Sayre,  Rev.  James,  389,  390,  408,  411- 

413,  440. 

Sayre,  Rev.  John,  58,  68,  74. 
Scotch  Episcopacy,  360,  422. 
Scottish  Bishops,  215,  239,  240,  348. 
Scoville,  Rev.  James,  76,  124,  208. 


Seabury,  Rev.  Charles,  427,  428,  437, 
439,451,455,460. 

Seabury,  Edward,  433. 

Seabury,  Elizabeth,  letter  of,  18. 

Seabury,  John,  1,  2. 

Seabury,  Nathaniel,  24. 

Seabury,  Samuel,  1-4,  21 ;  death  of, 
17;  letter  of,  5. 

Seabury,  Samuel ;  birth,  1  ;  baptism, 
3 ;  graduates  at  Yale  College,  4  ; 
Catechist,  5  ;  at  Edinburgh  Univer- 
sity, 6,  7  ;  ordination,  and  mission- 
ary at  New  Brunswick,  8  ;  marriage, 
8;  at  Jamaica,  8-21  ;  at  Westches- 
ter,  21-48,  464;  outbreak  of  the 
Revolution,  25-27  ;  A.  W.  Farmer's 
pamphlets,  28-30;  suspected  and 
watched,  31  ;  arrest,  and  memorial, 
35-42 ;  release  and  return  to  West- 
chester,  43  ;  church  closed,  45  ;  es- 
cape from  Westchester,  48  ;  chap- 
lain, 53  ;  sermon,  54  ;  practices  med- 
icine, 56  ;  chosen  Bishop  of  Connec- 
ticut, 78 ;  testimonials  in  support 
of,  80-95 ;  embarks  for  England, 
96;  arrives  in  London,  105;  imped- 
iments to  consecration,  108,  109 ; 
application  to  Scottish  Bishops,  128  ; 
consecrated,  1 45 ;  returns  to  Lon- 
don, 163;  embarks  for  America, 
1 88  ;  lands  at  Newport,  206  ;  recog- 
nition by  his  Clergy,  209-211  ;  an- 
swer to  his  Clergy,  211-213;  first 
ordination,  213;  first  charge,  216- 
225 ;  Communion  office  set  forth, 
263 ;  liturgical  changes,  264,  265  ; 
second  charge,  267-282  ;  salary  and 
income,  285,  286  ;  use  of  mitre,  318, 
319  ;  extract  from  sermon,  327-329  ; 
first  visit  to  Boston,  329  ;  appears 
in  Convention  at  Philadelphia,  368 ; 
first  President  of  House  of  Bishops, 
373 ;  opinion  on  the  use  of  creeds,  376, 
377 ;  secures  a  change  in  the  Com- 
munion office,  382-385  ;  pastoral  ad- 
dress to  his  Clergy,  386 ;  extracts 
from  address,  397-399  ;  chosen  Bish- 
op of  Rhode  Island,  and  visitation  to 
the  churches,  401 ;  ordination  at 
Portsmouth,  N.  H.,  403  ;  sermon  be- 
fore General  Convention  in  New 
York,  and  extract,  4 19-421  ;  joins  in 
consecration  of  Dr.  Claggett,  422 ; 
Office  for  the  Burial  of  Infants,  430  ; 
pointed  psalter,  431  ;  last  Conven- 
tion, 445  :  visits  churches  in  Rhode 
Island,  447  ;  preaches  at  East  Plym- 
outh, and  last  ordination,  452  ;  vis- 
itations, 453,  454  ;  declining  health 
and  death,  454,  455  ;  character,  457- 


496 


INDEX. 


459 ;  personal  appearance,  460 ;  in- 
scriptions on  monument,  tablet,  and 
window,  465-468  ;  extracts  from 
letters,  15,  20-24,  50,  51  ;  letters  to 
Isaac  Wilkius,  32  ;  to  Society,  45- 
47,  54,  171-175;  to  clergy  of  Con- 
necticut, 106-112,  118-124,  130- 
133,  167-169,  207,  208;  to  Cart- 
wright,  135  ;  to  Myles  Cooper,  136- 
138;  to  Bishop  Ivilgour,  142;  to 
Jonathan  Boucher,  159-162  ;  to  Dr. 
Smith,  229-236  ;  to  Dr.  White,  251, 
252,  349-356  ;  to  Governor  Hunt- 
ington,  266 ;  to  Bishop  Skinner, 
294,  295 ;  to  Bishop  Provoost,  299, 
300;  to  William  Stevens,  300,  301, 
426,  427,  436,  437,  441,  442;  to 
Samuel  Parker,  303,  326,  327,  365  ; 
to  Bishop  Drummond,  336-339  ;  to 
Tillotsou  Brouson,  344-346 ;  to  New- 
port gentlemen,  392-396  ;  to  E.  Pun- 
derson,  396,  397;  to  Dr.  Dibblee, 
409,  410  ;  to  John  Clark,  413,  414. 

Seabury,  Samuel,  Eev.  Dr.,  380,  460. 

Seabnry,  William  J.,  Kev.  Dr.,  460. 

Sears,  Captain  Isaac,  36-38,  41 . 

Seeker,  Thomas,  Bishop  of  Oxford,  13. 

"  Second  Ecclesiastical  Society,"  2. 

Sharp,  James,  337. 

Sharpe,  Granville,  164,  165,  242. 

Sharpe,  John,  Archbishop  of  York, 
164. 

Shelton,  Rev.  Philo,  213,  407,  425. 

Sherlock,  Thomas,  Bishop  of  Lon- 
don, 7. 

Skinner,  Bishop  John,  126-129,  144, 
145,  147-149,  153,  156,  165,  166, 
176,  182,  183,  201,  240,  294,  338; 
letters  of,  186-188,  204-206,  295- 
298;  Primus,  341,342. 

Skinner,  Bishop  William,  468. 

Smith,  Rev.  Robert,  256,  363,  449. 

Smith,  Rev.  Dr.  William,  143,  165, 
166,  179,  190,  197,  198,  200,  203, 
205,  228,  229,  236,  244-246,  251, 
292,  296,  322,  356,  358-362,  367, 
378-380,  419  ;  chosen  Bishop,  191  ; 
President,  House  of  Deputies,  384  ; 
letter,  362-364. 

Smith,  Rev.  William,  the  younger, 
256,  391-395,  439,  448. 

Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the 
Gospel,  3-9,  12-15,  20,  21,  23-25, 
27,  33,  34,  46,  49,  50,  54,  56,  57,  59, 
60,  66-68,  72,  171,  176,  207,  285, 
456,  463,  464. 

Sons  of  Liberty,  27,  45. 

Spraggs,  Rev.  Mr ,  254. 

St.  Andrew's  Chapel,  156. 

Starr,  Jonathan,  123. 


Stevens,  William,  162,  202,  285,  300, 

342,  426,  436,  441. 
Stiles,  Dr.  Ezra,  237. 
Stratfield,  special   meeting  of  clergy 

in,  367. 
"  Strictures  on  the  Love  of  Power  in 

the  Prelacy,"  450. 
Stuart,  House  of,  144,  339. 
Swedish  Bishops,  173. 


Talbot,  Rev.  John,  134. 

Taylor,  Charles  N,  426. 

Taylor,  Ralph,  134. 

"  The  Appeal  to  the  Public,"  20. 

"  The  Appeal  Defended,"  20. 

"  The  Appeal  farther  Defended,"  20. 

"  The    Corporation   for   the  Relief  of 

Widows  and  Orphans,"  194. 
"  The  Proposed  Book,"  246,  256,  287, 

320,349,  361. 

"  The  Whole  Duty  of  Man,"  13. 
Thirty-nine  Articles,  343. 
Thomas,  Dr.  John,  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  7. 
Thurlow,  Lord  Chancellor,  342. 
Todd,  Rev.  Ambrose,  315. 
Townsend,  Rev.  Epenetus,  132. 
Trinity  Church,  New  York,  55,  71. 
Tryon,  Gov.  William,  54,  58. 
Tyler,  Rev.  John,  76,  195,  455. 


U. 


Underbill,  Nathaniel,  36,  38. 
Unitarians,  331,  332. 
University  of  Edinburgh,  6,  7,  79. 
Usher,  John,  402  ;   ordained,  432,  433. 
Ustick,  William,  Jr.,  426,  442. 


V. 

Vandyke,  Rev.  Henry,  213. 
Viets,  Rev.  Roger,  76. 


W. 

Washington,  General,  55,  62,  64-66, 
68,  72,  361,  379. 

Washington  College,  in  Maryland,  143, 
187,  190. 

Washington  (Trinity)  College,  Hart- 
ford, 158,  319. 

Webster,  Dr.,  338. 

Welton,  John,  438. 

Welton,  Robert,  134. 


INDEX. 


497 


Wesley,  Rev.  Charles,  188,  399. 

Wesley,  Rev.  John,  188,  230,  399,  400. 

Westchester,  21-24,  26,  31,  36,  41-43, 
46-48,  53,  54,  67,  72. 

Westchester,  St.  Peter's  Church  at, 
28. 

Westchester  County,  27,  29,  38,  39, 
49,  50. 

West  Point,  conspiracy  to  surrender, 
63. 

Wetmore,  Rev.  J.,  8. 

White,  Rev.  William,  103,  169,  170, 
192,  194,  195,  199,  226-228,  236, 
245,  246,  248,  249,  251,  253,  255, 
258,  292,  296,  299,  304,  305,  308- 
310,  331-334,  337,  346,  347,  349, 
356,  358-364, 366-368,  373-378,  381- 
384,  388,  400,  401,  418,  423,  424, 
433,  449,  450, 469 ;  pamphlet  on  Epis- 
copacy, 97,  98,  200,  469;  president 

32 


of  Convention  in  Philadelphia,  244  ; 

chosen   Bishop,    290;    embarks  for 

England,  291  ;  returns  to  New  York, 

298  ;  letters,  301-303. 
Whitefield,  Rev.  George,  4,  11,  12,  14- 

16. 
Wilkins,  Isaac,   28,    30-33,   180,  262, 

456. 

William  III.,  335. 
William  and  Mary  College,  421. 
Wilson,  Rev.  Mr.,  463. 
Wood,  Rev.  Mr.,  8. 
Wooster,  John,  415. 
Wyllys,  George,  167. 


Y. 

Yale  College,  2,  4,  438. 
Yorktown,  siege  of,  65. 


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